Sheikah Warriors
by 11Artist11
Summary: Everywhere you go, it is said that the Sheikah tribe was extinct. But it was not always that way. Follow a small band of sheikah as they journey out into Hyrule for help..Will they make it? Or will personal secrets tear them apart? A year ago this story was started, now it is complete. Thanks to all the readers! Reviews are STILL appreciated.
1. Part 1: The Beginning

**This is my first story about (and actually first written on fan fiction). It's OC-based, so if you don't like that kind, feel free to hit the back button and find another story. I love Legend of Zelda, so I'll just start writing. Every view, comment, favorite and follow counts. I appreciate reviews about the story plot, those are the best kind. This occurs years before the Shiekah tribe was disbanded.**

**Traditionally, you can't officially become a Guardian of the Royal Family until you have passed the test and completed your training. This basically occurs between the graduation of two shiekahs during their training and adventures. I hope you enjoy.**

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**Chapter 1**

As the sun dawned up in the sky, the group of Shiekah trainees threw several kunais and shurikens at the targets. One kunai missed its mark, instead of flying into a target, and flew off into a tree stump. Briefly, the rest stopped, waiting for their teacher to immediately snap back to their world.

"Kiara, I expect you to hit ever target. Now what has caused you to lose focus?" A young woman named Ziri, asked, crossing her arms. She settled her gaze on a girl with blackish-red hair, wearing an all grey Sheikah trainee uniform. There were no markings of the Sheikah tribe on her arms, for she had not finished her training yet. After a long day of training yesterday, she was hoping everyone had sharpened their focus for the test and perhaps...their graduation from the advanced class.

"I didn't lose focus. It's just that the target -" Kiara began

"This lesson doesn't have moving targets. And I expect an answer, Kiara. All yesterday we were learning about focusing our blows and magic, but it seems you haven't been paying attention at all," Ziri interrupted, "do we need to discuss this later?" She narrowed her eyes.

Kiara shifted uneasily from her gaze, waiting to hear her punishment. Ziri's eyes scanned the girl, trying to find a fault from the outside. Since she couldn't see anything. She squinted for a few moments, imagining that Kiara had been thinking something else. She seemed very distant, as if she was thinking about something else, and not the lesson itself. She had to punish her in a way that she would understand was serious.

"Hmph, three laps around the mountain top, fifty pushups and situps, and three rounds of close combat with the trees. You need to remember that this training requires a lot of work in order to be ready for the test and later, your graduation...if you make it."

"But-"

Ziri narrowed her eyes again, glaring at the girl.

"Never mind."

"That's what I thought. Anyway, you all may stop. Go get a drink, all of you."

Kiara rushed off with the rest of the group as they sat on a large tree stump and opened their water flasks.

"So what caused you to lose focus?" A boy named Chad asked, teasing her.

"It was nothing."

"Humph, I expect you to climb the mountain instead of eating!" He said, mocking Ziri.

"And that's funny to you?" Kiara arched her eyebrows. She was used to climbing the mountains. She often failed most of her teachers, but none had rejected her yet. She thought on to the next day, when she would learn a few simple spells, like cloning and small flights of teleportation. She turned towards the mountains that protected and hid their land.

"I hope we get to head to Hyrule soon."

"You're not going to Hyrule unless you graduated, but you already would have known that unless you weren't listening." Chad said, glancing at a few other trainees as they effortlessly jumped up a tree and surveyed the area. Chad left her and back flipped on to a rock high above Kiara. She huffed, and put away her flask, getting up and climbing the rock that Chad had crouched upon.

"What is it?" She asked, turning her head, using the spell 'Eagle's View' to scanning the area a few miles away.

"Seems that the transports have arrived with the goods..." Chad said, "but there's something else...hold on a second, I see some suspicious activity. Come on! Oh wait...you have to do the lesson all over again with Ziri and then climb the mountain...right." He snickered, leaping of the rock and leaving an enraged Kiara on the rock. She crossed her arms and looked away. Chad had always teased her since she was young. He wouldn't pull her hair because it was always short, but he would always stick his tongue out at her when she missed a target, or if she got nervous. He always seemed to be there to tease and irritate her. No matter what. The one thing that inspired her to keep going was the best Sheikah still alive. Impa. She could outmaneuver people 8 times her size, find their weak points in a flash, and take down every challenge in her way. And as soon as the current guardian of the Royal Family became older, she would compete to become the Guardian of the Royal Family of Hyrule. Kiara would give anything to be like her.

The sun was high in the sky as she turned around, using her Eagle's View spell to see where Chad had headed. He was off towards the village, and she was missing out.

"Kiara!" Ziri's voice echoed towards the clearing where the group of trainees had been. There was only two left, and they had eventually headed back to the town. Kiara was the only one left. Sitting on top of the large boulder by the stump of a decaying tree. She hesitated.

"Kiara!" She heard Ziri's voice call, a few feet away. She knew that her lesson was about to begin, but she waited on top of the rock, sitting and taking a deep breath. She had a big decision to make.

Would she go do her boring lesson all over again, or would she risk running after Chad and having an adventure?

Ziri wasn't very far from her. In fact, she was right around the trees near the path to the mountains. Kiara jumped off the rock and looked in the direction where her teacher would be. She took a deep breath, and sprinted off towards the path of Chad, and the village. She knew sooner or later that

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**Edit: So, I guess that's it for the new updated version of chapter 1.**

**I hoped you liked the chapter. If you haven't guessed already, Kiara is one of the main characters in this story. There's one more that you'll get to know further. If you liked it, please review, follow or favorite. It means a lot to me. I do answer PMs and questions, but I won't spoil. You'll have to wait for the next chapter to find out what's going on ;) I'll update as soon as I 'can'. So please enjoy this chapter.**

**Yours truly,**

**AuthorPen11**


	2. A Regular Day

**First off, I would like to thank my reviewer (Legendoffun, yes you) for reviewing, and favoriting :D**

**As I said before, I'll answer any questions (meaning people requesting spoilers, I don't give out spoilers) you have in a review or PM. Also, after I have sent out a chapter, I will go back over it (once more) and correct errors I did not notice as I spell-checked (because they were correct) or read (because I'm always excitedly reading). Thank you all for your continued support! I'll continue, because I know you all love this story! For those wondering when I'll update, I plan to do update this every Thursday and Friday. Thank you.**

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**Chapter 2**

Kiara darted down the path, hoping to catch up. Whatever Chad was suspicious of was always exciting. Like a few days ago, he stopped a thief from taking confidential documents. He was considered a hero until Ziri heard about it... He got in trouble, and had to hunt for his dinner and train extra hard for the next two days. As she turned the last curve of the dirt path, she spotted Chad jump on a small hut, and then on a building. Kiara gained speed, sprinting down the hill and using her momentum to launch herself into the air, landing on the hut, and with a quick rush of adrenaline, leap beside Chad and a few other trainees.

"What are you doing here? Don't you have training with Ziri?" He asked, glaring at me.

"No, she decided tomorrow, she became suddenly busy." Kiara lied quickly, "what's going on?"

"Apparently," he said, pointing down to the streets, "Ira, Kari and Raven are up to no good."Kiara used Eagle's View to get a better look. Kira and Raven seemed to be waiting for Ira to come from the transporter's wagon. She was probably smuggling something. Kiara squinted further, but she couldn't get a good enough look. When Kiara stop using Eagle's View, she had noticed Chad was already several buildings away from her. He left me on purpose, she thought.

Kiara stood up and darted after him in an instant. Kiara jumped over one gap, another, the third, the fourth, but at the fifth, she tripped, Kiara fell quickly and landed on Chad. After gaining myself,she blushed, finding that she was on top of Chad. Hastily she got off of him and shook her head looking away.

Chad stood up. "What was that?" He barked.

"What?" Kiara replied furiously, facing him.

His dirty blonde hair and orange eyes flashed with anger. His face was red, and he was very...embarrassed. The other trainees (Fauna and Nova) probably wouldn't keep that to themselves. The last thing Chad wanted to hear was that he and Kiara...kissed.

"What on earth were you doing!" He said, pointing at me angrily. "You nearly blew our cover!"

"Why don't you tell me why you left me!"

"I was getting a better view!"

"Oh yeah hotshot, you sure were." Kiara said, rolling her eyes, "you were ditching me weren't you."

Chad was silenced. He opened his mouth and then shut it. Without facing her, he spoke. "So what if I was leaving you..." He jumped off the building, and the last she saw him, he was dashing off towards Ira and her group. Fauna and Nova, who were good friends of his, waved good-bye to Kiara and left her on the building. Kiara crossed my arms and huffed in frustration. She sat on the edge of the building, swinging my legs.

"So that's where you are." A voice behind her said. Kiara turned around and gulped. It was Ziri. She sat beside her and laughed. "Chad's the best at everything, and it seems you could too. But something always seems to hold you back. What is it?"

Kiara watched the sun lower behind the mountains. She huffed.

"You like him don't you."

Kiara colored quickly.

"Me?! Chad?! No! What even made you think that?" She said.

"It's pretty clear. You just need a little time don't you.." Ziri whispered. Kiara looked away. "I could make you join his group, or help you."

"If I join his group, he'll just leave me out. And you're to good for me." Kiara said, huffing again in frustration.

"And who told you that?" Questioned Ziri

_Everyone..._

"I expect you to still do the mountain run tonight. I'll see you tomorrow." Ziri said, and then she vanished in a puff of purple smoke. Kiara began to think about Ziri's words. Did she like Chad? Was it that clear? Should she accept Ziri's offers?

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**I know that chapter was short, but I just remembered that I needed to send in another one. Anyways, thank you for reviewing Legendoffun and I look forward to seeing more from you (and perhaps others).**

**Yours truly,**

**AuthorPen11**


	3. Onward to Graduation

**Hi Everyone :) Yes, it's me 'Pen11'. I'd like to thank Legendoffun for review and adding a favorite, but I'd also like to thank you all for just reading this. Even if you don't feel like reviewing, a view is just as special. It means you bothered to read what I had to say. It means that I'm not just writing this story for nothing. I'm pretty sure that the authors who have never had a review get a little view will at least smile. But I'm sure they would grin excitedly to see a favorite or a review (not exactly sure if they would do that when they get a follow, because there are plenty of Ghost Followers). Anyways, thank you all for everything. I'll answer your reviews from Chapter 1 and 2 now.**

**Legendoffun -**_ I'm glad you love this story :) it makes me real happy to know that you enjoy it :D And now that I think about it, I'll try to update the Saturday before Christmas for you, it'll be the Christmas Special :D. If you'd like. Yeah, sorry about the long wait, but homework and life always comes first...right? xd And don't be sad, I'll try to update every week. And if you want some extra information about the now introduced OCs, check out my profile under 'OC Introduction' and then 'Warriors of the Sheikah Tribe'! So far I have Kiara, Chad, Ziri, Fauna, Nova, Ira, Kari and Raven! Also, I have a question. Have you guessed who the 2nd main character is? If you can guess, free cookies (::) for you!_

**Anyways, thank you all! I'll start you off with the next chapter.**

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**Chapter 3**

The crisp, cool air of the morning greeted all the drowsy trainees. They all dragged themselves behind Ziri to their normal training spot. The only two not half sleep was Raven and Chad. Raven never made eye contact with anyone but Ziri. She barely spoke. Chad seemed completely calm. But what really was on his mind was yesterday. Every since Kiara fell on him yesterday, he couldn't sleep. When he told his older brother Zack, he regretted the discussion.

Last night...

Chad crept down the stairs of the home and pulled up some chilled milk from the cellar. He was restless. He couldn't get to back to bed. Every time he closed his eyes, he dreamed that Kiara had fallen on him during class, and the group had saw it. Felix, Fauna, Nova, Ira, Kari, Raven, Hiko, Dawn, Yuki, Ziri and Maya! It wouldn't be long before everybody knew! Chad hadn't noticed his brother walk down the stairs.

"Chad, what are you doing up this late? Getting a sip of water again?!" Zack exclaimed

"Well, I couldn't sleep obviously." Chad replied, "especially with the extra training tomorrow."

"It seems that's not the only thing bothering you... what is it?" Zack asked, raising an eyebrow suspiciously.

"It's just about an annoying classmate that's all."

"Uh huh, I believe you as much as the rumors that have gone around. Anyway, if you're restless because of that rumor, it's probably just a prank. Some people would go far enough to claim that they are the heir of Holodrum." Zack said, rolling his eyes

"It's not that."

"Then what is?"

"I told you it was just about this girl -"

"Wait, you said classmate, and now it's a girl? What, do you like her or something, but she refuses to like you back? Oh, or is it that she has this tough boyfriend, and you can't beat him, so you are staying up all night to train harder?"

"Not at all! I don't like her!" Chad said, extremely annoyed with his brother at the moment

"Says your face." Zack replied

Chad noticed he had instantly colored.

"It isn't like that! I don't like her! She's the worst at everything! She is always missing her targets -"

"So what you're trying to tell me is, you would date the girl if she was hotter, if she was better than you, if she had foresight, if she could always hit her target...man, you have a lot on your 'Girl List'. You might not find her... anyway little bro, what's her name?"

"I'm not telling you!"

"So you do like her?"

"No!"

"Then what's her name?"

"Kiara..."

Present...

Chad hadn't been able to take his head out of the clouds since that discussion, he did get some sleep, but he wished he hadn't said anything about Kiara. Zack had the nerve to tell him to say "Hi" to her in the morning. Chad scoffed. He couldn't imagine him and Kiara as a great couple. In fact, he was disgusted by the thought. Apparently, during this 'think session' as Fauna called it, Ziri was calling him back to earth. Because she irritated and annoyed, she yanked him by the ear and hissed,

"Chad!"

Immediately Chad shook his head, one, the loud hiss, and second, the sudden pain of his ear.

"Ow!" He screeched, "what?!"

"What?! What?! What do I have to say to you? Well today we are training not sleeping!"

"I wasn't sleeping." Chad said, frowning.

"Then what were you doing?"

"Thinking."

"About what?"

Chad remained still for a moment, glancing about to class. "I was thinking of why Kiara isn't here."

"Oh, I gave her a few suggestions, made her do a mountain run... she'll be here by the time we actually start."

"So she lied to me?"

"What's it to you if I did lie?" Kiara declared, right behind him. She grabbed him by the collar and turned him around. "What, are you worried?"

"Wow...what happened to Ki?" Felix whispered loudly to Fauna.

Chad scoffed. "I'm not worried at all."

"Thought so." Kiara said, eying him with a sly smile.

"Anyway, after this class, if you make it, you'll no longer have to wear those trainee uniforms, instead, you will now wear the new Sheikah warrior uniforms." Ziri said, drawing attention from the class again.

"Your job is to make it up to the mountain and grab a flag. There are nine flags. White, red, green, pink, purple, blue, yellow, gold and brown. Those will be the last students in my class for the year. If you fail, you have to go find another teacher. Out of the successful nine students, I will make three teams. Those will be final. That means you'll be a team until you graduate..."

The class exchanged looks.

"So, you're saying, you'll be choosing the teams?"

"Yes, and after that, you all will each receive your team uniforms. You have to go up the mountain, get a flag and come back down to me. I'll tie the flag to your arm, and you will sit down behind me. If someone takes your flag before I tie it on your arm securely, you'll have to run all the way up to get it. If you use magic, you all have to start all over again. Let's begin..." Ziri explained, smirking slyly. The group all exchanged looks. It was no longer friends and happiness, it was honor and war.

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**And that concludes Chapter 3! How do you like it? It took me a couple of rewrites and ideas to get it right. Anyway, please leave a review whether you're a guest or member of fanfiction. It helps! Please remember, if you see some errors, I will go back and edit the story. Yes, I do listen to those reviews. Anyways, it's time I leave using my signature...**

**Yours truly,**

**AuthorPen11**


	4. The Test

**Hi Everyone, it's me again! And yes I did go back over my last chapter and edit it. Anyways, thank you Legendoffun for reviewing. For all, I plan on writing the rest of the introductions for my OC characters. I'll give them a little more backbone and back story, like maybe a short explaining of each character after each chapter. So tell me what you think of my ideas in a PM or review!**

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**Chapter 4**

Ziri glanced at the students one last time. If everything went according to plan, she'd be able to set them up perfectly.

"Ready..."

The tenseness of the students vibrated throughout the air. Every breath was shaky as the sudden news had astonished them all.

"Set..."

Everybody relaxed for a short time before getting ready to sprint.

"Go!"

They all dashed as fast as they could towards the mountain. Some took the steep, rigid path. Some took the swampy, dark way. Others just began climbing up a small cliff and jumping towards the top. Though you could not tell who was first, you could tell who had fell into traps, some were glued to a wall by bezel wax, and others were caught in Ziri's devices. A few students managed to dodge the traps laid before them. Nova and Chad began leading the group across the Walter Waterfall, leaping on the unstable rocks until they had gotten to the other side. A few took the bridge, only to be sorry for their mistake and have to swing their way across.

The people left in the swamps and mountain paths had managed to get in front of the leaders by a few shortcuts. The group began ascending the mountain. At first, everyone was making climbing at a great rate. But as they ascended, the air got colder and thinner. The group gasped for air, climbing as fast as they could to the half point mark. Once there, they would have to use the ice path or climb the frozen rocks. Some stopped to warm up by the small fire, while others continued. Nova, Hiko and Ira began climbing the rocks while, Kari, Chad, Kiara and Felix began running up the ice path, which was certainly a bad idea. Kari tossed a smoke bomb ahead of the group and disappeared in the mist. Felix stumbled, knocking over Chad and Kiara. They slid near the edge, Felix just getting up and chasing Kari.

Kiara instantly became frightened as she slid near the edge of the mountain. In a moment, she was off the edge, falling. As she fell down, a hand grabbed her arm. The snow obscured her vision, but she didn't let go of her rescuers hand. In what seemed like hours, she was on the edge, hauled up by her saviour...Fauna? She was a bit skeptical, at first, thinking Chad would have at least have compassion, but at the same time relieved to see a friendly face.

"Thanks..." Kiara whispered, shivering as the cold snow caked her clothes.

"Your welcome, now come on!" Fauna said, leading her up the ice path. The pair made it near the top, just in time, for the other groups had finally climbed up. Fauna snatched a flag, waving 'bye' to Kiara, and jumping off the edge of the mountain, down to the snow below. Kiara grabbed another flag, leaping after her. As the crisp, frozen air rushed upon her, she remembered to slow down, that way she wouldn't freeze as she descended at a rapid pace. Suddenly a gust of wind ripped the small flag out her hands, off towards the side of the mountain. In her shock, Kiara forgot what she was doing for a split second. She glided towards the flag and flew down after it. In the flight of mid-air, she watched it swirl straight into a cave. Kiara landed in the icy snow, walking inside. It was quite dark and eerily silent.

Kiara rubbed her hands together, trying her best to get warm. A sudden idea came to her. Grabbing a few sticks, she made a small fire in the back of the cave. Grabbing another small stick, she lit a torch and wandered into the back of the cave until she found the flag. Suddenly, a loud rumbling above could be heard. Running back, her torch went out, leaving her in the black to wonder back to the exit. As she looked all around her, she noticed two red eyes peep back at her. She widened her eyes and rushed towards the blocked exit. She tied the flag to around her arm and slowly backed towards the exit in fear. The little fire she made was beginning to die out, but it showed the one thing she feared most. Winter wolfs...

She slowly moved towards the exit, only to find it had been blocked by snow. She'd never make it out...she'd die in here.

"Help!" Kiara shouted, gripping her knife in her hand shakily.

Her voice echoed in the caverns, bouncing off the wall. The wolf slowly crept towards her in sly, sneaky way. She backed up towards the snow. She didn't take her eyes from him once. As it pounced upon her, she swung her leg, kicking it into the cavern wall. It ignored its pain and wobbled back up in anger. Kiara stumbled backwards, not expecting the sudden force of the dog to push her backwards.. She wobbled towards the entrance and prayed silently for help. The wolf's eyes narrowed, and it growled furiously. Kiara hopped away from the exit, towards the small bit of light streaming in from a crack. She readied her knife, only to be caught of guard by some keese. In her panic, she dropped the knife and rushed away. She quickly forgot about the wolf until she saw the red eyes in the dark. She crawled backwards towards the exit, trying to find a new way to defend herself. She knew her shurikens would barely hurt it, or her bad aim would get her killed. The wolf growled menacingly, before giving an evil grin.

She prayed again for help, moving towards a corner. As the wolf pounced, she moved out-of-the-way and ran towards a medium-sized crack she had noticed. Halfway there, she stumbled on a rock, hurting her already sore ankle. She dragged herself towards the crack in the wall, grabbing the sharp edge, standing up, trying to find a new way to get out of her predicament. Her breathing became shallow as the air was becoming used up because of the fire she started earlier, her rapid shouts and breaths, and the wolf swallowing 'tons' of air. She took a shallow breath, trying her best to stay awake. Falling asleep by a wolf would mean death, and running out of fresh air would mean brain death.

"Help..." she whispered, clasping her hands together. "Bring someone, bring anyone..."

As the wolf neared her, she saw the entrance of the cave brighten. It blasted open. The wolf had stopped and darted off towards the new intruder, already knowing that Kiara wouldn't bother moving.

"Who could it be?" She wondered. The howl of the wolf and the instant silence made her wish she didn't dash after the flag. She yelped when a hand grabbed her by the arm. She whirled around in fear. She calmed down spotting Nova. Nova picked her up and helped carry her out.

"H-how'd you find me?" Kiara asked Nova, shivering slightly.

"I heard you about a mile away. And your cry didn't sound like a joke. Now let's get you out of here."

Nova helped Kiara down the mountain and back towards the start.

_...Meanwhile..._

Chad leapt back down a small cliff and landed on a tree in the swamp. Sitting on his perch, he could see anyone who was leaving the jungle. The quick ones probably had a flag. He thought. He jumped down on a swinging vine and observed Hiko and Yuki chatting as they slowly walked back.

"You think someone might still be up there? I heard someone call for help, but by then, I was already down. I saw Nova go back up, she must have dropped something." Yuki exclaimed.

"Whoever it was, they were probably just trying to steal someone's flag because they didn't have one, and they cried for help as a decoy." Hiko replied, "I wouldn't go back unless they were in real danger."

"You might want to..." Chad said, as he jumped down from above them, seizing Hiko's flag and darting off.

"Hey!" Hiko cried, as a net dropped down upon them.

"See you at the finish line!" Chad whooped, dashing off towards Ziri. As he came out of the thicket, he looked around for Ziri. Where could she be? He scanned the trees for any sign of her. He saw her in a tree, looking at something. Springing up towards her he said,

"Hey! I need you to tie my flag you know! You can't be hiding! I've got others on my trail!"

"Fine, fine..." Ziri said, tying the flag around his arm. "Now excuse me..." She pushed him out of the tree and on the ground. Chad frowned.

"What was that for?"

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After about 2 hours, eight more students came. The only ones missing were Felix, Kari, Nova and Kiara. Five of them had flags. The other three just waited until the rest came to steal their flags. The waited for another half hour before Felix and Kari arrived. Hiko, Maya and Dawn were the only ones without flags. They waited. Finally they spotted Kiara and Nova running towards the group. Hiko and Dawn jumped upon them, only to hit each other. Maya slipped, and got tangled up with the other two. Ziri greeted the girls and tied their flags around their arms.

"I guess that shows who is passing and who isn't." Ziri said, looking at the small heap of trainees. "Congratulations to those who passed. After you eat, and get cleaned, you all should get a good nights rest. In the morning I'll tell you who's on your team." The trainees all exchanged glances, while the failures dragged their selves back to the village to find a new teacher. The group of 10 headed to the nearby baths and hot springs to clean up and relax, after they had eaten their dinner. As the boys and girls parted their ways, Kiara limped beside Nova, thanking her.

"If there's anything you need, I'll help you with it." Kiara promised.

"Oh really?" Nova said smiling, "I'll tell you in a bit after I get this swamp gunk out of my hair." The girls headed into the showers and began getting themselves cleaned. Several just leapt into the baths, while others first took care of the buildup of wax, rocks, leaves and swamp water. As Kiara washed her hair, she looked into the mirror at her reflection. She thought of the next day, when she would get her first Sheikah tattoo, showing all that she had passed training and could do class D missions with her team. She smiled at the thought. She had made it, despite all the people who didn't believe in her. She made it!

Kiara put some floral wash into her hair and began scrubbing as much dirt out as she could. After her head was carrying a giant sud, she stepped into a shower and began rinsing herself off. She closed her eyes as the refreshing feeling of water as it splashed on her dirty skin and began to soothe her aching muscles. She relaxed as the warm water hit all her tense spots and left her with the clean feeling. Her hair stuck to her face after she turned it off. The misty air of the hot baths relaxed her. After her shower, she went into the water and relaxed in the faint orange-scented water. She let out a glad sigh. All her training last night had paid off. All her studying and precautions didn't.

As the waters of the hot bath took away her aches and pains, she began to think about the next morning. Kiara let out a relaxed sigh and began to close her eyes briefly. She felt someone tap her on the shoulder.

"Are you going to sit in there for the rest of the night or get out and get ready to sleep? You know we have more training tomorrow!" Fauna said above her, giggling for some strange reason. Kiara smiled and got out, drying herself off. Nova took a deep breath, approaching her slowly.

"That was a long training session... so, Kiara, you got to tell me what happened later. I'll be back it a bit." Nova said, walking off to get some fresh clothing. Kiara dried herself off and walked after her, Fauna trailing behind her.

"Uhm, Kiara, I wanted to ask you something."

"What?"

"Oh nothing..." she said, going suddenly silent as she went to comb her hair. That reminded Kiara that she should do the same. She brushed and combed it thoroughly, making sure that every knot was gone, and when she was finished, she trimmed it by half an inch. She tossed her hair a few times before leaving the mirror. She then changed into a warm, white nightgown. As she left to head straight to her bed room, Nova walked up.

"I thought about what I wanted you to do..."

"What?"

"Nothing, can't think about anything now. But I'll think of something in a few days. That's a promise. Now good night Kiara."

Kiara smiled, waving goodnight to her and walking towards her room. Garin dashed past her. But before she rounded the corner, she crashed into someone.

* * *

While the girls went to bed, the boys all headed to the hot springs. People were taking short naps, playing about, chatting and relaxing. Chad had to jump in so he could get some relaxation. As the water greeted him, he noticed it was a bit cold. Someone was standing on the crack that heated the water. Searching out the source, he was stopped when he was shoved into the water. His face plunged under, and he felt a hand push his face further under. He gagged slightly before kicking the person. As his head popped back and he gasped for fresh air, he noticed that Felix was wading off.

"Hey! Where do you think you're going?!" Chad said, swimming after him and shoving him into a group of chatting men.

"What was that for?" Felix demanded, "I didn't hit even hit you!" Felix demanded.

"What?" Chad was confused. turning around, he saw Garin get out of the water, laughing. Quickly Chad sped after him, only to be stopped by people in the way. As he navigated his way out, he lost sight of Garin. Finally, he got towards the edge of the pool and climbed out. He grabbed a towel and rushed out of the hot springs and into the changing room. He quickly changed into a white shirt and some grey wool pants. He dried his hair quickly and dashed into the hallway. He just spotted Garin round a corner. He dashed at full speed, rounding the corner and crashing into someone. As he fell on the ground, he felt an extra weight on him. Opening his eyes, he saw Kiara right on him, for the second time. It was as if they couldn't avoid each other. And this time, they were extra close. Time seemed to stand still as they looked into each others eyes. Kiara blushed deeply, and Chad just lay there, looking back at her. He was brought back into reality when he realized what had happened, again... His face crimsoned instantly when he noticed his brother standing not far from him. Kiara got off of him and looked away.

"I-I didn't see you there!" They chorused. They both stopped. Chad looked back at her one last time.

"Uhm, bye...I-I-I'll see you...uhm, tomorrow..." He mumbled.

"Ah, ok..." Kiara said, looking at him in a daze. Chad looked back, seeing her stare at him, before looking away and walking to her room.

As Chad and his brother walked home, Zack nudged him.

"So that's Kiara? She looked like everything you wanted during that test." Zack teased.

"Yeah... wait, you were watching that?" Chad said

"Yeah, everything on your list fitted her perfectly, except for the part where you said you didn't like her. Seemed to me you were awfully happy in that place." Zack snickered.

"Shut up!" Chad said, punching him in the arm, "that was an accident!"

"Well, accidents happen, but love comes on purpose."

"I said shut -"

"I heard what you said!" Zack said, yawning, "night Chad, don't dream about her..."

"I heard you..." Chad muttered, greatly annoyed as he walked inside his home and to his bed room. "See you in the morning."

* * *

**And we end the chapter, leaving some of you to wander if I plan on placing the postage stamp on Chad and Kiara :P Well, I guess you could say I brought the box already, but I haven't quite put on the duct tape. Anyway, thank you Legendoffun for reviewing.**

**Important Announcement! For those who love Warriors of the Sheikah Tribe, and yet they haven't reviewed...do review! It is much-loved and appreciated! Oh, and Legendoffun, you get free cookies (::)(::)(::)(::)! You're right, Chad is one of the main OCs! If it was easy for you to guess, then you're an expert! If it was hard, that meant I wasn't hinting to much! Also for those who want to ship Ki and Chad, you have your combined name: Chadiara (Chad-ee-are-a, for those who don't know how to pronounce it they way I am)! Ha ha, well you can say that as much as you want. And for those trying to insist I make more pairings, review or PM, I might just add it! I might also change this to T because of romance and well...you know, Chad when he's furious xP Also, before I finish this chapter, here's a little info about Raven.**

**Raven Almira:**

_Raven first appeared in the village as a small girl. She didn't beg, but stole food from several households. No one knew where she came from, or who were her parents. After she stole more food from more homes, the people demanded someone to stop the thief. The one who caught her was none other than Ziri, who had pity on the small, quiet girl. Some thought she was dumb because she never spoke, but that was not so when Raven began begging Ziri to train her. During the 6 years that passed from then to the present (during this story), Raven bonded with Ziri, and became an expert with magic along with joining Ira's unofficial group. She excelled in magic arts and was a straight A student. She never got into any trouble if she thought it would make Ziri furious._

**Well that's about it for Raven now. Maybe next chapter I'll do Chad or Zack (maybe if I get two reviews?). If not, I'll just do Ira.**

**Legendoffun \- I'm glad you like this story! I'm glad it makes your day! That's always good! And you were right about my second main character! Thanks for being my good reviewing friend! It means a lot :)**

**Anyway, thank you for reading and viewing. Oh, did you know this chapter is longer than the whole story (right now, excluding this chapter)?! Anyways, please take your time to leave a review! But I have to go, so I'll be signing out with this one...**

**Yours truly,**

**AuthorPen11**


	5. Graduation Day

**Hi Everyone, it's me again! I just want to make this Author's Note short, so I only have a few things to ask. Will you please go to my page and vote in my polls? I'd appreciate it. Can you review if you like this story? Thanks, that helps... and finally, can you do me a favor? First thing you can do is tell friends who you think that might like this story about it. Second, review (I said it again didn't I), and third, please don't think I'm trying to nag you. This is my first story, and I would love more reviewers (thank you Legendoffun &amp; Irene T447!).**

**Legendoffun - Well good for you ^.^ I'm glad you loved that chapter! Also, I'll give you info about Zack in the next chapter. Sorry about that... But...You no longer have to wait for that 'next chapter' because you're reading it! Anyways, thank you for reviewing!**

**Also, I plan on writing another Sheikah-based story that occurs a few years before this story. Okay, about 10 years... anyways, thank you.**

* * *

**Chapter 5**

The next bright, sunny morning, the intermediate-ninja sheikahs, who were no longer trainees, all got up and headed to their usual training spot. To their surprise, Ziri wasn't there yet. Instead, there was a male about her age with brown hair and red eyes.

"So you're the new students I've heard about. Congratulations. As for your teacher, she'll be here in a moment. I'm the assistant, but I have more perks than usual ones do. For instance, I could ask that two of you train extra hard and such...now that I think about it, I never told you my name...my name is Ire. So, it's nice to meet you all. So I know you all have some secret dislikes about Ziri's training methidss, but I'll tell you a funny story about her..."

The class exchanged a few confused glances.

"I didn't know we had an assistant teacher..." Nova mumbled. Fauna and Kari shrugged.

"Well, me and Ziri were classmates, and well-"

"I would advise you to not tell them that story unless you want me to throw you down a hill." Ziri growled.

Ziri sighed, and then spoke towards the students.

"So you've all met Ire haven't you. Well good. Because he is our assistant until you all graduate. I'm sure all of you are waiting for the results in your teams and all, but I have a few brief words. Since you all have graduated, you are no longer trainees. You are intermediate Sheikah warriors. You will go through extreme training to learn ways to protect yourself, find food, scout and much more. Besides that, you will be able to accept missions and complete them for money you and your team can decide to spend on, though I would get supplies more than anything else. Any questions?" Ziri asked

Nobody had anything to say, so Ziri continued.

"OK, the results are in. Team Alpha has Raven, Kari and Yuki. Team Beta, or what ever you want to call it has Nova, Felix and Ira. That leaves Chad, Kiara and Fauna on team Zeta. Your new uniforms are in the small hut a few moments away from here. Go get changed and then come right back. You can chat for a few seconds, but that's it."

"No way...!" Fauna said to Nova, "we aren't on the same team yet Kiara and Chad are!"

Nova simply nodded. "But we'll see each other. I'll write, you just have to be here to get them."

The groups headed over to the hut to get their uniforms. 'Zeta' was the first group to get there. Chad was completely silent the entire time, worrying Fauna.

"Chad, what's wrong? Aren't you excited?!"

"Would've been if Nova was on our group."

"Well I'm sure Kiara will fine. Now cheer up, this is just until you become a advanced Sheikah...! Which will be a while." Fauna muttered.

As the group turned the last turn towards the hut, the group became silent. They were all excited to see their new uniforms. Fauna headed straight towards the hut, Kiara right behind her. They entered, finding their uniforms immediately. The uniforms weren't similar at all to the traditional Sheikah warrior outfits because they weren't officially Sheikahs yet. The female uniforms that was for Zeta was red.

It had a white undershirt under light armor that had a lightweight red wool shirt over. It wasn't very showy to Kiara's relief. There was short black pants and a matching skirt with two red and grey feathers pinned to the satchels around the waist, along with dark brown boots. The male uniform was similar except instead of a skirt, there was long black pants.

For the Alpha, the wore similar clothing except that the color was blue and the satchels were grey. Beta had green uniforms with black satchels around the waist. Fauna and Kiara found a closed area to change. Fauna twirled the skirt.

"Cute." She commented. After Chad appeared they headed back to Ziri at a slow pace.

"So...Kiara..." Chad said, "I guess we're on the same group...so...uhm...-"

"What do you think we should do after Ziri tells us whatever she is going to tell us?" Fauna asked, skipping ahead of the group.

"I don't know, stock up on supplies. I guess."

"Oh, ok. What do you think Chad?" Fauna questioned.

"I guess we could stock up on supplies before seeing what missions we should sign up for." His gazed settled towards the ending path. They had arrived back where they started where Ziri and Ire were.

They were the second group to arrive, Alpha just beating them by ten seconds. After Beta arrived, Ziri and Ire opened a large bag. Inside was a bunch of weapons and maps.

Ziri called Raven, Fauna and Nova together. She began talking to them about being the healers of the group and to always look after their teammates and make sure they didn't get into any fights. She handed each of them giant tomes so they could learn different types of magic. The rest of the group was given small packs of kunais and throwing stars. Chad was given a traditional sword while Kiara was given a recurved bow with black and red arrows. After everyone had been equipped with their separate weapons, Ire began explaining a few things.

"The reason you all have weapons is because outside of this village are wild animals, dangerous people and much more. Over the next two days, me and Ziri will be helping you master special Sheikah techniques. Because all of you have already practiced with several weapons, these were chosen for all of you during your early training days. Each of these were crafted according to the skill and knowledge each of you had with them. Me and Ziri will be choosing your first missions. They won't be to easy, and they won't be to hard either. Hopefully by then you will know who's your leader. I'd recommend you trust no one in the outside world." Ire said.

Everyone nodded, but before they left Ziri stopped them.

"The best team at the end of this month will be assigned a top-secret special mission. You're not allowed to tell anyone about this mission, and I'm not being held responsible for any of your injuries, and your death is not on my head. If you do not wish to go ahead, return your weapons and uniforms. But remember, you aren't allowed back into your current groups. You'll have to go through the test all over again the following month."

Ziri then proceeded to give everyone their first sheikah tattoos. She handed Kiara, Ira and Yuki the maps of Holodrum, Labrynna, Termina, and Hyrule. The way back to their home land was marked with a few secret Sheikah letters to direct them homeward. After a few words were exchanged, the group was dismissed for dinner.

* * *

**And another chapter! It wasn't as long as the last chapter, but now you know what they now look like and who's with who. Was it obvious Chad and Kiara were going to be placed together? Probably. Anyways, I know this will be a bit depressing (or maybe not), but I won't update next Thursday and Friday because I want a Christmas break. But Saturday I will give you a special! If you haven't already, go ahead and review for the earlier chapters and vote in my polls if you have an account. If you don't, just say so in your review who you like most.**

**For all those wondering why there are a lot of changes, it's my editing again. I decided to listen to a review and make everything more Legend of Zelda and less Naruto. As for the magic of teleportation, I wasn't exactly thinking everybody else, and I'm not making a 'magic spell' for clones, because they aren't that advanced anyways. I'll be answering all of your reviews in the next chapter though. I'm glad I saw them before I began writing my next chapter. Thank you for reviewing.**

**Another thing I have to say is that I have two polls, but only one of them is showing. The second one is asking you whether I should write a multi-chapter story about Raven and Ziri. A question I have to ask you is, 'what do you think about Ire?' Think he might make a good pair with Ziri? Okay, maybe I shouldn't start saying stuff like that...**

**Ira Kidomo -** _Ira is a very impressive braggart. Shell practically brag about anything she's got her hands on. She has a rivalry with Kiara and has an obvious crush on Chad. She's OK at magic but is always in shape. She often is found chatting to anyone around her. Gossip seems to be the only thing she talks about making everyone know their secrets aren't safe with her. Ira used to live in Holodrum with her mom, but moved here when her mother married again._

**Anyways, thank you all for reading! I have to go now...**

**Have a Merry Christmas! See you later!**

**Yours truly,**

_**AuthorPen11**_


	6. The Tunnel

**Happy New Year!**

**Hi everyone! I'd like to thank my reviewers Irene T447 and Legendoffun for reviewing and such. As for the critiques, I thank you, I will go right back over that and correct it and make it more original like my writing. Also, I will be correcting myself (thanks to some help) and change 'Shiekan' to 'Sheikah' as it is originally spelled. But before I begin, I have reviews to answer too :D**

**Irene T447 -Thanks for reminding me to change 'Shiekan' to 'Sheikah'. I thought I was missing something (Chapter 1)... and for Ziri, I reedited that and made her say something different, so if you want, you can go see a small little edit in what she said, though I don't recommend wasting your time on that (Chapter 2). And Ziri did set some traps, though I didn't exactly specify what it was and how they worked because I was trying to finish that long chapter ASAP (Chapter 3). And about the stuff that reminded you of Naruto, I went back and changed some of it because I want a more imagined and not copied world. . Sorry if I confused you, I'm glad you caught that so I could fix it, and about the teleportation and clones, I am going to only allow them to do teleportation but not clones so we can have the 'not to powerful' feel of intermediate ninjas. And Kiara's 'fight with the wolf' was reedited also (Chapter 4). I'll be expanding the universe some more, because right now they are still in the land of the Sheikah and not in Hyrule. It's a big world, yet I'm only centered on one place now. About the usage of kunai knives, I was mixing sheikah and ninjas...again (Chapter 5). Thanks for your critiques (to me they were excellent :D) and reviews, it helped me fix an in-progress story!**

**Legendoffun - Thanks, I'll be relaxing during my Christmas break. If you noticed the weird change in font, it was me copy and pasted to quickly fix my errors according to my reviews. And I'm glad you like the story. And go ahead and ask the characters questions! Thanks for reviewing!**

**If you want titles for the chapters, I'll go ahead and work on that later. Also...Don't forget to send in your review by Wednesday to see a reply in each chapter!**

* * *

**Chapter 6**

Many of the sheikah warriors were doing well. The town was buzzing with excitement. This week the young warriors had a week off from extreme training. They still did some fighting, but it wasn't 'learning new techniques' training. Everyone was simply grateful for the week off. It had been two weeks since they had graduated from being trainees. A lot had changed within the teams. Fauna had gotten better at her magic and knew some advanced healing spells. Kiara bought herself a crossbow, and carried it around in her satchel. It was only three days before the festival.

During those times, Fauna and Kiara had became good friends. It's really hard to ignore someone who will be on your team for another five years. As for Chad, he had his usual talks with his brother Zack and was doing fine. The next day there was going to be a festival. It was about time for the Sheikah Eye (a great star, that showed itself every 10 years), was to appear. Every year, in the spring, it would vanish. Some people would say that if you were born on that day, something extremely bad would happen in the near future. But if you were born, or wished really hard for something the moment the star appeared, all would be well, and your wish would come true.

But nobody really believed that nowadays. Everyone was bustling around to buy dazzling dresses and fresh food for the festival. The pastry chefs worked hard on cakes and pies, excited to show their masterpieces to the town before it was gobbled to crumbs. Everyone was thinking about it the day before during training. Ire was in his usual jolly mood will Ziri was greatly irritated by his careless comments and jokes.

"You really should hold your tongue," she hissed, "I don't need children repeating such foolish quotes and stories that you tell... it'll only bring disaster."

"I don't have the slightest idea what you mean." Ire replied, making a fake cough to conceal his laughter. Ziri rolled her eyes in annoyance. He hadn't changed much since the last time she met him. It was a day that seemed so close, yet so far away. Ziri didn't exactly think it was such an exciting day, but she had to let the warriors go because it was a custom. There was to be many dances during those two days.

As Ziri remained in deep thought, Ire sat down beside her.

"So what are you thinking about? What you're wishing for tonight?" He asked, a small smirk on his face

"No, I was thinking about something different. And even if I was, I wouldn't even hint anything to you. You're just going to tell the rest of the class anyway, untrustworthy fool..." She muttered

"Me?! Oh, so that's what your worried about! I was just trying to be fun, I've seen their bored looks when you start talking. You got to change a bit. Your future relies on it..."

Ziri pushed him away from her, "forget it, you're going to get them into serious trouble being all easy on them. They have to learn that life isn't always a fairytale."

"You think fairies are insulted when people say that?"

Ziri scoffed, "find one who would."

Ire kept quiet for a moment, letting out a small sigh.

"I was actually surprised to find out that I would help teach your class. I knew it'd be tough just coming back with the one person I always...well, dreaded."

Ziri gave him a confused look. "You were?"

"You always were better at teaching than I was...before. I learned that most people learn better when everything is shot at them by darts. It really helps them when they learned that you once struggled before. Some students look up to their teachers and think that they'll 'never be like them' because they only think they hear is how imperfect they are. They'll just give up or get killed that way. So I decided to be a little carefree and tell them some stories about when I tried what they were doing."

"You mean we. Every time I come, you're talking about me."

"Well that was different -"

"Right, as different as different will every be."

"Well, we should go now, it's been about half an hour, and I really got to find something to do for another 3 hours but chat. I'll see you before it appears."

"Oh sure..." Ziri replied, getting up and leaving, "I'll see you later then."

"Bye."

"Yeah, bye."

As Ziri left, and awkward silence seemed to hang over Ire. He shook it off and walked back to the village. He always remembered those days when he was younger. The days he'd say it in the darkness the few things he wished for. Of course they never came true at the same time, but he knew that someday, the one wish he made when he was 11 would come true...

* * *

Chad opened the door the his home, closing the door behind him, and sat down on one of the chairs in the living room. He pulled out one of the books off the shelf and flipped to a random page. Zack opened the door from the cellar a few minutes later. He was a bit surprised to see Chad back so early.

"Oh, hey."

"What's going on? Did you get in trouble, is that why you are back so early?"

"No, I just was a bit tired, just wanted to read a bit before I doze."

"Oh? Ok, I thought you would be back an hour later. I mean usually you train longer before the competition next week, where you and your team can -"

"I know, explore the world beyond. And by the way, that's in two weeks."

"Well, whatever..."

Zack shrugged and walked back downstairs to his other workshop. Besides being an artist upstairs in his studio of a bedroom, he also did many arts and crafts in his workshop in the cellar. Chad got up and placed the book in the chair, following Zack down. He took one of the torches down a tunnel until he was at the shop. Zack had already started working on something with his carving blade. Chad just settled down with some of Zack's study books, and began reading.

* * *

Fauna walked through the forest until she was on the far side of the village. There was a two-story home by a small cave covered by a large sheet. Fauna opened the door of the home and closed the door behind her. Inside, the fire was ablaze with a beef stew hanging over the flames. Her mom was preparing a salad while her father was practicing with a book of new spells. Her mother acknowledged her presence immediately.

"Fauna! It's good to see you! Go drop off your stuff and wash up. I need help with the rest of dinner."

I nodded, heading up the stairs to the bedrooms. My mom and dad's was the first door on the right. The storage room was the first two doors on the left. I walked to the third door and opened my small room.

There was a medium sized bed on the floor by the far corner, two bookshelves surrounding the bed, and a dresser beside a small desk and chair. Fauna dropped her bag of spell books onto the desk and changed out of her outfit until she was wearing some casual clothes. She walked out of the room, cracking the door slightly and headed outside to wash her hands. After she was done, she headed back inside and was immediately handed a carrot and a peeler.

"Can you peel that for me? Thank you." Her mother exclaimed, walking along to stir the stew and prepare tea.

Much later...

After a nice meal of beef stew with carrots, and snow peas, Fauna followed her mom to town to get some food for the festival cakes they were going to make. As they walked through the market, a few shopkeepers, began shouting to get attention. Fauna huffed and walked along, covering her ears in annoyance.

Fauna stopped when her mouth dashed over to a line for flour. She sat on a bench and waited for her mom to get out of line.

The one thing you have to hate about shopping is waiting for your mom or dad to get out of a long line. it just takes forever just to get flour.

As Fauna remained in thought, she smiled to see Nova not far from her. Nova was busy walking through and hadn't noticed her yet.

"Nova! Over here!" Fauna shouted, leaping up.

Nova didn't seem to notice her until a few minutes later. When she turned her head, she rushed along. Fauna dashed towards her and grabbed her arm.

"Nova! Didn't you see me?" Fauna questioned, releasing her grip on Nova's arm.

"I was trying to ignore you." Nova replied, huffing

"Ignore me? Why?"

"You are always so annoying. Whining constantly about this and that. I was going to see a friend of mine, and you're in my way. Now if you'll excuse me." Nova pushed her way through and continued walking. Fauna was puzzled, Nova sometimes acted like that when she was irritated back at home or just was a bit sick.

"Fauna!" She whirled around. Her mom walked up to her.

"Where do you think you were going?"

"Well, I saw a friend, but she just left about a moment ago."

"Well I still have to buy some more stuff for the inventory of our shop." Her mother scolded, walking along to find a few more things. Fauna dragged herself behind, looking for the last item on their shopping list.

* * *

Kiara walked to her home excitedly. She swung the door open, slammed it with a bang and skipped up the stairs of her small hut for a home. She rushed to the living room and kicked the chest open, tossing things out of her inventory to find a perfect dress. She lived with her Aunt Mila. She finally stopped upon examining a red gown with golden trims. She smirked. She took it out. It reeked of moth balls and she coughed violently because of the dust. It was a faded sort of red, lacking washings and sunshine. Kiara laid it out on the floor and began stuffing things back into her chest. She shut it just as her Aunt scuttled into the room.

"Kiara! You're back so nice and early, that's great. Is that the dress you have picked out for the festival? It's beautiful but it smells awful. I'll wash it for you," she snatched it off the ground, "this was a dress I had planned to wear at my 25th birthday, but you know how that ended up. I tripped into a bag of feathers and broke my leg. That ruined it, until I remembered my sewing skills and patched it up. I found the same exact shade of red and patched it up with barely visible thread. My, I could barely see it when I made my knots and stitches!"

Kiara smiled.

"Yes, I know. I was going to wear it just to well, I don't know, try to find someone to dance with!"

"Didn't you say you were dancing with that boy in your group?" Aunt Mila said, turning her head curiously, her headscarf tied tightly around her forehead.

"Why, no, I don't recall saying that."

"But you'll need a dance partner for the traditional dance!"

"I'll find one, I promise."

Aunt Mila smiled, "I'm sure you will," she said, chuckling, before leaving Kiara to herself again. Kiara dusted herself off and headed towards her room. She opened the door and dived into her extreme studies.

A bit later...

A knock on the door brought Kiara back out of dreamland. She had been studying for 30 minutes straight before she dozed off, trying to figure out a question. She stood up and opened the door. Her Aunt Mila handed her a small package.

"It's your dress for tonight, don't unwrap it until you are ready to try it on." She said, smiling at me, before leaving the room to do some more sewing. She was indeed a seamstress, she had saved many of my party dresses (the few I attended anyway). She shut the door, leaving me all alone with my books to study, my messy room and the beautiful dress. I placed a scrap of material as my bookmark and closed it. I picked up my books and orderly placed them in my satchel. I placed the rest of my sketches of dresses and do-it-yourself books in my small bookshelf that I had made myself. I picked up the dirty clothing from those morning rushes to ninja 'fighting' and placed them in a hamper that my Aunt would check and wash in a few days. I placed it outside my room and began clearing the floor.

I began with my bed, pushing everything to the floor and sorting it out. I reorganized my bed, fluffing my pillows and straightening my comforter. I placed the dirty clothing in the hamper and the junk I had lying on it in it's proper place. I began clearing the floor, and in about two hours, I had cleared by bed, dresser, and floor, resulting with a clean (but it wasn't like wash cleaned).

Kiara tore open the package and tried on the dress. It fit snugly, it allowed enough movement for running and dancing. Kiara laid it down on her bed and began digging through a box of dress shoes handed down from her aunt. After a short search, Kiara choose white sandals four her shoes and tossed everything back inside, snapping the lid shut and pushing it under the bed. She took out her pot of rupees and began digging inside it for a red rupee. The end result was just a yellow and two blues.

She put away the rest of the money and placed the rupees on her dress along with her shoes. Kiara put the pot back under the bed and walked out of her room and into the living room where her Aunt was mending some of her sleeves.

"Uh, Aunt Mila, I'll be back." She shut the door behind her and left.

Kiara walked along and headed towards Fauna's home. Fauna wanted to show her something, and she told her to take her crossbow and hurry before the festival began. Kiara figured she must have found something really exciting and dangerous to tell her to bring her crossbow, she wondered why she didn't want her to bring her bow. As she wandered down the path to Fauna's home, she stopped when she saw something blocking the road. She dived into the bushes, and stood as still as a stone when she heard a commotion up ahead.

"What do you mean 'you heard someone', I didn't see anyone." A burly man came into view, leading a pair of oxen towards the town. "Nobody really takes this road beside those edge-of-the-road people. And I told you that if someone was really here, we would see them."

"They probably darted off when they heard you!" Another guy shouted, he was thin and his voice was scratchy. He sputtered when a few branches flopped back into his place. He pushed a few bundles behind a large box. "We should hurry up, it'll be easier once the festival starts."

"And we'll finally be able to get rid of that package." Another voice piped in. It was a woman with a grey hood pulled down. She seemed to be looking for something. "Take the left turn on this fork."

What will be easier?

"Right." The man beckoned the oxen forward, only to go a little faster. After they were gone, Kiara was startled. 'What would be easier once the festival started?'. 'What were those two doing?'. Kiara furrowed her eyebrows in confusion.

Maybe they are making a secret cake to present before the star appears so it isn't eaten and looks good after all that dancing. You can easily make a cake if you are running a store while everyone is busy dancing.

Kiara retraced her steps a bit, and stopped. The wagon wheels weren't headed toward the town, they were headed towards the forest. Just ahead was a fork in the road, and it would be hard to track them once the wheels hit the rocky path. They could swerve off and disappear. Kiara stopped.

I said I would go see what Fauna was talking about, but I also want to know what those people are doing here. But if I don't go, I'll disappoint her. But if I don't follow them, I might lose them. I just don't want to leave any of them. This is hard, but I think the right decision is to...

* * *

Chad knocked on the door of Fauna's house and stepped inside. Fauna led him through the kitchen and hallway until they were in the storage room covered by the large sheet. Fauna said it was temporary, their father was going to build a roadside shop there when her brother came back from working in the army of the hylians.

I honestly wondered if he would ever come back. Not that I'll tell her that. Hyrule was always in the middle of a big war. I thought it was pointless helping them. We never told them where our villages was, and the only family that knew where we were died ages ago. Unless they passed it down to their descendants. I didn't think we were safe with them knowing where we lived. It put us in more danger. Especially with the groups of careless ninjas that live in the same land we live in. They might just let everyone know where we are, and bounty hunters will be everywhere. The reason we don't live in Hyrule is, because we aid the hylians, some of their enemies don't like us very much. And they try to kill us. So that's why we only send out about 7 a year. It's better for all of us this way.

Fauna had taken one of the lanterns and taken me to a dark corner. There was crates on the floor, against the wall and ripped garments tossed carelessly in the corner. Fauna put it on the ground and began pushing things out of the way. I finally realized what she was excited about. There was a large, long hole that descended in the wall. It was dark and eerie. That must have been why she wanted me to bring my pocket knife. Just in case.

"So this is it? Have you explored it yet?"

"Not to it's full extent. This is a map of what I explored. The 'X's are dead ends, the 'O's are paths with three choices, the 'D's are forks, and the rest is unexplored areas." Fauna explained, handing me a scrap of parchment paper she had written on. I handed it back to her after a quick glance.

"Do we have to wait for Kiara? I want to see what's down there."

"There are rupees, but that's all I saw, everything else, I don't know."

Chad took the lantern and patted his knife.

"Come on, let's go. Just leave a note for Kiara telling her we went right ahead, and that we'll be back in ten minutes."

"Ah, ok." Fauna was a little hesitant, but she did as she was told. She propped the note up on a scrap of cloth and rearranged the boxes to hid the hole.

"If my father finds it, he'll seal the hole with boxes and mud, and once that mud dries, it'll be harder to move and get out. Besides, small tunnels don't have lots of air."

Chad nodded, pushing the lanterns ahead of him and crawling into the tunnel. As they continued, he noticed that Fauna wasn't behind him. He stopped, turned around once he was at a fork, and looked back. She was there, but moving slowly.

"Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I was just thinking. Sorry." She crawled up to him. "Which way do you want to go. I haven't explored the left one at all, but the right one was plenty of passages I haven't checked."

"Let's go to the right, it's better to fully explore a well-known passage then start a new route." Fauna nodded, though she was a bit less excited than when they started.

They continued down the right path where Fauna explained what she found turning that corner, and going over this way and that, but Chad just continued on.

"Was that passage here?"

"I didn't go this far. Did we make any turns?"

"Only one, but I can't remember, just draw back to where you remember. That's about all I can do for you." Chad replied

"I think our ten minutes are up, we should head back. My parents might be worried, or Kiara might have showed up and they are looking for me."

"Pshh, it's only been about 5 minutes. You worry to much. She will find us. She always has a way of finding us." He reassured. Once again, Fauna hesitated, but continued following him. She was a bit slower, since she was documenting new pathways they passed and following their journey with her pencil and paper in hand. Chad stopped.

Before him was a path that led into a brightly lit place. It was glowing with blue lights partly covered by green bushes.

"What's this?" He continued crawling forward, and he was a bit surprised to see ground he could stand up on. He stood up and spread his arms out, stretching the aching muscles. "That feels good..."

Fauna came out and did the same, drawing a large box. The blue lights turned out to be a lake underground where bushes and plants lay. There was a separate small pool filled with aquatic life. Fauna's face brightened.

"Let's rest here. I want to stretch a little longer. I also want to check out the plants." She pulled out a small book she had taken with her and began drawing the plants around her. She recopied the map in her book, and placed it back in her satchel. She looked in the water, watching the fish. She noticed a hole underwater.

I wonder where that leads to...

"Fauna, come on, let's go. I'm pretty sure we should be heading back."

"But there's something down there!"

"We can't swim fast enough or breath underwater."

Fauna didn't exactly listen. She put her things away and rolled up her sleeve. She saw something shining at the bottom of the pool. She thrust her arm inside, wincing as the cool water touched her dry skin. In a few moments, she yanked her arm back up, smiling in triumph. In her hands was a pendant shaped like a oval with a purple triangle in it.

"What's that?"

"I don't know, but it's pretty. Come on, let's go now." She wiped the water on the ground, giving her a dust hand. She placed the trinket in her pocket and waited for Chad to go first. He did, hurrying back to where they last were. Fauna drew pools of water in the small box, along with a question mark over a small hole she drew. Chad hadn't seen the hole yet though.

"We need to make a left to get back." He said, following their 'knee-prints' back to familiar ground. About 5 minutes later, they found a large hole headed into a dark room.

"Told you we would get back." Chad said, stepping out into the darkness. Fauna followed, accidentally pushing Chad over. He dropped the lantern and it rolled into the darkness a few feet away. To their surprise, it was just over a long chasm of darkness, and they were on the side of a cliff. Fauna snatched the light before it fell off the edge.

"Where...are we?" Chad questioned, looking up, holding on to the ground firmly. He let out a frustrated sigh. "I'm afraid we are lost."

"You think?" Fauna shouted. She stopped when the cavern quaked a lot. "It's no use staying here, I'll write a message and part of the map just in case Kiara comes here. Let's get moving, we can't just sit here, we need to get out of here."

"I know that, let's go." Chad stood up and dusted himself back off, and crawled back through the tunnel, waiting a few moments for Fauna to finish with her message. Fauna finished quickly and continued crawling after him but was stopped.

"We can't get out, someone pushed a boulder in front of our exit." He growled.

"What? But no one was here...!"

"We have to find another way out, the air in here must be coming from somewhere..." He trailed, looking around the dark room. Fauna made a light sphere in her hand and looked for something to get them across. She saw a small hole.

"Down there."

Chad began pushing dirt aside to make the hole large enough for Fauna. It took a while, but in a moment, Fauna had slipped down into the hole. It was at the perfect shape to, because the rest was sharp rocks.

"What's down there?" Chad asked, placing his ear to the hole.

"Wait...there's another tunnel, you have to crouch to get through."

"Well don't leave me here!"

"Right, back away from the hole and hang on..."

Chad walked backwards, hearing a small whirring sound. Suddenly, the hole was big enough for the two of them. He jumped down, following Fauna through the tunnel, into the mysterious cavern.

"We're definitely lost, I don't recognize any of this, and feel this, the ground was just freshly dug. Something alive is down here. We should hurry. By the looks of this large tunnel, it could swallow us whole." Fauna warned, going faster. Chad pulled out his knife and nodded. They weren't just having fun anymore. Anytime now, a large beast could smash them or kill them. There was no high rate of survival. The maximum was about thirty percent.

Fauna tripped on a root, rolling to the ground.

"Ouch, where'd that come from?" She questioned, but suddenly shrieked and ran ahead. The vine shot up at Chad, grazing his arm by a few hairs. He bit his lip as a small trickle of blood followed the scratch. He jumped away and wrapped his arm quickly as the vine sprouted more tentacles and blocked the way towards Fauna. It then shot globs of acid at him, which he dodged easily. He tossed a few needles at the oncoming vines, sighing with satisfaction when they dropped down. He pulled them back out and used them like mini swords, slashing through a few vines before tossing them at the barrier ahead of him. He dodged another vine, but was hit in the chest with an unseen one. He dropped to the ground, clutching his stomach in surprise.

"Now that was just rude..." He swung the small knife at another one, cutting a hole into the wall and jumping through just as it closed. He darted after Fauna, placing the knife in a small pocket as he rushed onwards. It seemed that the tunnels twirled ahead, so he stopped. He saw that her footprints led to the right pathway where it had been blocked by a boulder. Trying his luck, he rushed ahead in to the middle path after her.

This is just odd...

* * *

Kiara stopped. She knew that those three were up to no good, but she couldn't back down on Fauna's plans. She froze when she heard a group approaching her, unfortunately, since she moved from her previous spot, there was no bushes to dive into. She stopped, darted towards a tree nearby. She climbed to the top and hung silently above another wagon rolling by. The wheels bobbed up and down on the rocks, and two other hooded people rode by. In the back was a pile of hay. As Kiara gripped the branch, it snapped. She covered her mouth and luckily dropped into the hay, but attracted some attention.

"What was that?" One asked, looking about.

"Probably another wild creature. But come along, we must focus for the mission ahead."

Kiara tried to get out, but she was tangled with some sort of rope. She tugged, trying to get loose, but it was no use, she was held tightly. Not only had the struggling been pointless, it made things even worse, her leg was more wrapped up than ever. And the worst part was that Kiara's crossbow had been left in one of the small twigs in the tree. She groaned quietly.

The only thing she could do was wait. The wagon bustled along slowly, before coming to a stop. She heard the group get out. She could only see a little bit as the two got out and walked into a small building on the side of a cliff. There was another wagon as well. It had been unloaded. She began to sweat when the two came back with another person and began approaching her, hidden in the hay. A hand reached in and snatched her arm, yanking her to the dirt.

"What's this? A extra?!" One said, clearly surprised. Kiara struggled to stand up, wrenching her arm free from the sturdy grip.

"I don't know how she came, but we have to get rid of her."

Kiara backed up, she had brought no weapons whatsoever...

She back-flipped backwards when one of them tossed a needle at her.

"Capture her! She poses a threat to the plans!" A familiar voice said. Kiara looked to her right and saw the same woman from early, but at this moment, she felt herself get pricked. She looked down through the growing darkness to see one of the needles in her arm. She wobbled side to side and stumbled to the ground, shadows covering everything else...

* * *

**Another chapter finished, and a lot of things are happening. Thanks for reading the chapters again, so please review. Anyways, I'm making another giant change within the story, but you'll find out more of that later. For now, I am going to update Thursdays only, and give Saturday Specials (next week). I'm doing this because my break is almost over, and I need to get ready for school again. Not only that, I was planning on writing another story and updating it on Friday...details in a PM. I'm sorry for any mistakes I made, this was a long, exhausting chapter to write, plus fanfiction's spelling check just disappeared for some reason. But don't worry, I went back over it.**


	7. Escape

**Hi everyone! Me again! Glad you could make it to read another chapter of Warriors of the Sheikah Tribe! So far we have 6 chapters (7 now) and I'm excited to say that this chapter is 1/4 done. I know, you're surprised. But chapters will be getting longer (1,500 words min. 7,000 words max.) and I have another story that seems promising, and school, and parties, and celebrations (they're parties to I know). But still, thank you all for reading, and reviewing. If you favorite or follow that will be really nice, that will make me really happy. Anyways, thank you. I'm sorry for any errors in my story, I'll go back over them though.**

**Irene T447 - Hearing that from you means a lot. Thank you :)**

**Legendoffun - Thanks for catching the error, I'll be sure to go back and edit that. I'm glad you were able to read it in time :)**

**A shout out to Cigs98...thanks for the follow and favorite! Means a lot to me!**

**If you want a shout out too, don't forget to follow, favorite or review!**

**Anyways, I'll begin writing...**

* * *

**Chapter 7**

The door to a locked room opened and a body was tossed to the floor. A mangled mess of hair spread around the face of a young sheikah...Kiara. She lay motionless on the ground, in the middle of a deep sleep. Another form appeared soon after lighting the room by a few candles. Inside was a a small pile of hay and a few rags. The wooden boards had large cracks filled with mud and pieces of grass was growing here and there. There was a small window about the size of your fist, the glass cracked from violent attempts to get out. The door was shut and Kiara was left alone. As the sun began to set, Kiara stirred. She groaned, an aching pain in her arm that felt very similar to pins and needles. Blinking a couple of times, she stood up and surveyed the area.

Where is this place? Hmm...it's probably that building I saw with those wagons. But how did I get in here?

Kiara surveyed the room, spotting a small piece of glass upon the floor. She tried to walk over to it, but her hands and feet were bound, so she rolled over and over until she was sure she was right by it. She stopped, carefully picking up the sharp item, and began cutting her feet free. Once she was done, she repeated it with her hands, and then stood up, looking about the room. She stood on the top of the hay and tried to peak outside, but the growing darkness made it harder to see. She peered up through the window, sighing at the clouds of night.

Aunt Mila is really going to get me...it really scares her when I don't head home without telling her...

Kiara huffed, before turning to the door. She tried to open it, but the door was shut. She sat down on the ground, pondering an escape plan. She stopped when she looked at the walls, the wood was peeling off, showing signs of decay and neglect. Kiara stood up, and jumped a few spots away before charging at the wall. It held up, giving Kiara a bit of pain. She jumped back again, and tried a second time. The wall showed signs of breaking, she'd have to try one more time. She walked backwards, then charged quickly into the wall, a loud groan erupted, and Kiara fell on a brown and black carpet. Unfortunately, she had a splinter in her arm. She quickly removed it though, cutting a piece of her uniform and wrapping it tightly on her finger.

The next room was empty except for a few crates around the room. Kiara noticed she was standing in a pile of water, it was rain water coming from the window, a huge puddle from there to the room was evident as it splashed her sides as she darted across. She opened one of the crates and found it empty. She picked it up, and made it block her entrance, that way no one would suspect anything. She opened the second one and found an dull knife inside along with a smooth knife. She instantly tried sharpening the knife, but it was hard to hold it still, resulting in a couple scratches on her fingers. She dropped the useless items back inside, and walked over to the next one, pushing it aside. But it wouldn't budge, so she tried to open it. When it didn't move, she used the knife to pry it open. In a matter of seconds the box lid was off.

Inside was something covered in paper, she ripped it off and her eyes gleamed. She pulled out a piece of fruit and indulged the sweet flesh. She continued eating more until she heard someone coming. She rushed back to her room and pushed the crate as hard as possible, but it didn't move. Quickly, she dashed back and hid in the crate with the knife in rock. She held her breath when she heard the twinkle of keys, and the door open. A few steps forward, and then it stopped. Suddenly, it came closer, Kiara felt like fainting. The tension was so much, her hair was standing on end, even a gentle breeze from the open door made her shiver. She heard the steps again. The crate was lifted! Kiara nearly squealed when she was carried off, by a small crack she watched herself leave the room and pass through a hallway, before turning. Suddenly it was blocked off a wall. Kiara took a small gasp of air, and waited.

She heard the person leave again, and a small chat started. She cracked open the lid and glanced around her. She was in a kitchen. She jumped out, quickly shutting the crate and hid underneath a table when the person came back. They lifted it, but dropped it in surprise - because it was suddenly light - and hit their toe. They howled in pain, darting out of the room. Kiara sighed. If she had stayed a few moments later... she imagined being killed. She crawled from under the table and crept towards the other room, peeking inside. There was a circular table with a large map. There was a guy in his late twenties glancing about the map at certain points, not noticing anything. There was a female beside him. Kiara's eyes blazed in hatred. It was the girl who got her with the torpid needles.

She was chatting to the guy about something that was out of earshot. They both got out, and disappeared in a neighboring room. Kiara got up and quickly crept towards the map. She glanced at it curiously, studying the features, she realized it was the map of Hyrule. She had no time to study it further, so she darted under the table just when they came back. Apparently, they were in the middle of devising a great plot.

"We will need a small batch of highly trained warriors if we plan on setting that plan into motion. But they can't just be anyone, they have to swear an oath of loyalty. If they don't, extreme punishment is due." The lady said.

"We just need Tara to get a few recruits from this village. Besides, she knows what's best to trick a few people into joining us. This secluded village isn't familiar with any of us anyway." He chuckled. He seemed to be enjoying himself.

"They are a few graduates to choose from this village. That's what Tara is doing right now, she's trying to get some information about the latest ninjas. We'll be able to use them, and they won't know what they are doing. Children aren't exactly bright these days...besides that runt we found this evening." She muttered. At that moment, someone burst into the room.

"She's gone!"

"Who? The runt?" The man said, slamming his fist on the table.

"She knows a couple things, but I know exactly where she is. Hetia, check the storage room beside her place, she's probably trying to climb out if she hasn't already."

Kiara swallowed dryly as 'Hetia' walked out of the room. They were already on to her, of course she had forgot to cover the sign of escape from her cell, and know when they checked, they knew she was out. It was useless to stay any longer, but she just had to know what they were planning.

"Get me a glass." He muttered, and immediately the other person obeyed, leaving the room.

"If this runt gets out of here, this will take longer than I thought. We'll just have to hunt her down and kill her. If you let someone get away with it, they'll come back to haunt you. Just like in the story of the hero of legend." He grumbled aloud, his foot tapped anxiously. Someone came back in, and Kiara could immediately tell it was Hetia.

"What's the news?"

"She's not in there, but I'm sure I know where she is. She's right...there!"

The table immediately became invisible, and Kiara squeaked, standing up, but hitting her head. She rolled from beneath the table and dashed out the door. Of course, she was cut off by a burly man.

"Great job, now Hetia!" He shouted, a whiz in the air alerted Kiara of what just happened. She backflipped, and her eyes watching a needle plunge into the man's arm. He grunted, dropping to the floor. Kiara whirled around, spinning her foot into the other guy's stomach, but he grabbed her foot, stopping her. He flung her across the room, slamming her into a chair. Kiara bit her lip and jumped up again, ignoring the tingling of pain. She grabbed something from off a nearby table and tossed it at the man. He dunked and smirked, but his expression dropped when he heard the shatter of glass, he jumped away, skillfully dodging ever piece of glass. Kiara saw her chance and sprinted towards the window.

But Hetia was just as quick, and with a quick lurch, she had blocked Kiara's exit. Kiara turned around, noticing she was cornered. She furrowed her eyebrows before jumping at Hetia. She swung her foot around quickly, landing a few hits, but the critical ones being blocked. Kiara then reached down and pulled a few of her needles, holding them like small daggers, throwing one at the supposed leader.

"She's one tough kid, where did you find her?" He remarked, grabbing the needle before it hit his skin. He twirled it in his hands, throwing it down on the floor. He dashed at her, his swift moves beating her defensive blocks. He spun around and kicked her in the stomach, back into the same wall as before. Kiara stood up again, wiping the sweat off her forehead. She tossed one at an oncoming guy, and another at the chandelier above them. At this moment, the chain broke, and Kiara leapt out the window, flinching when she heard a loud crash behind her. She then screamed in horror upon noticing her exit.

Right off the cliff...

* * *

Chad continued down the cavern, glancing behind him and making sure there was no vines. He stopped when he noticed the tunnel before him descend into a dark tunnel. Luckily he managed to get the lantern before they - Fauna and Chad - were separated by the vines. He took it out and slowly proceeded into the darkness until he came across a couple of unlit wall torches, he quickly lit them, but was confused when they went out. He looked on the ground, and saw in Hylian words,

Light in the correct pattern, the light shall stay for now, the path shall open wide, and the treasure you seek be found.

So he tried again. And again. And again. Finally, he got it right, and the rock beneath him began crumbling. He snatched the lantern quickly, before plummeting into a hole. He couldn't even manage a yell before he splashed into chilled water. He swam to the top and swiftly swam until he reached a small patch of land. He was soaked through, and cold at that. He shivered as a small breeze whistled by. Turning around, he noticed large lily pads.

He began looking about when he noticed a path leading towards an exit. Quickly, he jumped from one to another, not wasting a single second to think before he was on the dry ground once again. He noticed the lilies sink, but rise up once again, barely wet. He shook his head, and tried to relight the lantern, but it was no use since he had left it cracked open to burn longer. He tied it around him again, and made a torch from some branches lying around. He used some candle wick and with a few rocks, he had the new branch in hand, and was slowly trudging down the silent, chilled room towards another place. He stopped when he heard a familiar scream. Running on ahead, he found Fauna cornered by the vines, thinking quickly, he threw the branch threw the air and onto the vines. He smirked when they tossed and turned as the fire depleted their life.

"Fauna use your fire attacks!" He shouted, slicing a few that had made their way to him. She listened, changing her approach and using her magic to light the vines aflame. Once the battle was over, Chad dropped down in exhausted.

"I-I can't go any further. I need a break. I fell into freezing water, got hit in the stomach, figured out a annoying puzzle, and oh, did I mention almost getting killed the whole way?!" Chad shouted, clearly aggravated. "Why did we go in this stupid maze in the first place? Did you even jot down where you went?! We should have just stayed where we were!"

Fauna looked down. "You're right." She said. Her face brightened. "But I know how to get out!"

* * *

**Done! Yes, and I'm done with this chapter! We are almost at the turning point (or one fourth, whatever you want to call it...)! And then again I noticed what I was missing in the last chapter... the extra notes about my characters! Now I think I'll do Zack and Ire.**

**Zachary - Better known as Zack. Zack is Chad's older brother. He's half-sheikah half-hylian. He doesn't tend to leave the house, since he works there. He paints and fixes items for his job, while working with the village blacksmith is one of his favorite hobbies. He usually is at the house, teasing Chad...as usual. Zack has a energetic personality, enjoying company from friends and family.**

**Ire - Ire is the Asst. teacher of the 'trainee' graduates. He often is talking to the students about his childhood, though, usually they involve Ziri (to her annoyance). He enjoys learning new things and chatting with people. He has a thoughtful personality.**

**Anyways, thanks for reading!**


	8. First View of Hyrule

**Hey! Hi everyone! I had to write this all over again (the AN) because I accidentally hit 'backspace', and now I have to write it all over again *groans*. But I'll make it nice and quick. Thank you _Cigs98_, _Irene T447_, and _Legendoffun _for you kind reviews over the past few chapters! Now since I know I have a lot to write about - telling more about Kiara's fall and how Chad and Fauna escape - and I know that I should go through further details with the story, but if it's just going to be walking through a hallway...we're back to the others. But I have some reviews to reply to so...  
**

_**Cigs98 -** Aww, thank you! Thanks a bunch for the follow, favorite and review! I am going to continue this story, and as to the too-much-characters-problem, on my page I have just separated the main characters from the Background/Side characters. The Background/Side characters won't be mentioned as often, but they will be just sitting in the background (I don't know, sipping hot chocolate?) when we are at the celebration in the village. So, thanks for reminding me! That group Kiara was with were the bad guys, but there's only four of them (the only name we got so far is Hetia (hey-tie-a)._

**_Legendoffun -_**_ I fixed that error just so you know, but thanks for pointing it out. I wish I could do four, but there's not much I can tell you all since that would just spoil._

**_ Does anyone have a guess for how many chapters it will take until they leave their home land?  
_**

**Anyways, thanks all, I look forward to your reviews in this chapter! But of course, I'll have to write it for you all to read it! Sorry that it's late...I did it at the last moment and I had forgotten it was Thursday again! I promise to remember next time though. And now I missed Thursday because I was so busy...so I bring it on a Friday .  
**

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**Chapter 8**

Spinning, descending, falling. Maybe it was to her death. But it wasn't today. Now if she had fallen off a cliff a couple of years ago, she would go splat on the rocks below, but instead, Kiara moved herself towards the waterfall. It would be rough being washed down by 400 pounds of water, but Kiara had trained with heavier weights - not like she lifted them to good though. In a quick moment, Kiara was rushed down by the waterfall and into the river below, the foam blinded her to everything around her. Kiara struggled to get back to the surface, the pounding water dragging her down. She swam as far as she could away from the bottom of the waterfall and paddled to the surface. Once she hit the top, she took a big gulp of air and swam as fast as she could to the riverbank. The strong current spiraled around the rocks, taking Kiara with it. No matter how hard she tried, the current would take her with it. The worst part about it was the freezing cold water that Kiara's numb fingers were swimming through. Kiara struggled to fight the rough current. Her mind blanked a few moments after she hit a oncoming rock.

Eventually though, she made to the edge. Panting, she dropped down on the earth, exhausted. The water sagged her clothes down, and she was shivering. She wasn't that far from town, but she didn't feel like taking a single step as a blast of air chilled her to the bones. She had to get out of those garments and dry them, or take the risk of running back to her home. Moving away from the riverbank and up to the top of a hill, Kiara laid herself off and pulled off her shirt. Underneath was her black, everyday shirt that was damp. Her first shirt was thick enough to absorb the water. All of a sudden, Kiara felt a sharp bit of pain. She clenched her teeth, and examined herself. She had a big gash on her side. Kiara spotted the open slash on her shirt and pulled some leaves of a tree and wrapped them together. She wrapped it around the wound and tossed the soaked uniform and boots to the sides to dry. All her energy was gone right now. Moving an inch would give her another kick of pain, and she already had a throbbing headache.

_If only I had went to Fauna's..._

* * *

As the walked up a steep path, Chad and Fauna smelt fresh air ahead. It smelled of flowers and mint. At the top, they observed that they were no where near Fauna's house. In the distance they could see a small speck by a wide cave. But that didn't matter. The view before them was incredible. Fauna gasped when she noticed that the Great Barrier Mountains didn't block the surrounding lands. She looked at the dazzling valleys and the few areas of incoming wagons.

"It's beautiful..." Fauna gasped. "Chad," she whirled around, "I want to explore more of that. More of _Hyrule_."

Chad backed up. "We aren't allowed to go to Hyrule at the present remember? Only after the week of the festival is over can we leave. Even if we have an important duty."

"Why not? Come on, we aren't that far from the top. Let's quickly get a blade of that grass and explore that village."

"We can't. You see those wagons? They are headed towards that village. None of them know that behind it is another land filled with sheikah and warriors. If we suddenly pop up, they'll know, and we'll be in big trouble."

"We'll just say that we live on the -"

"Fauna, no, just no. Unless you want a death sentence for something so dumb. We are not going." Chad crossed his arms and turned around, "we're going back. Even if we have to kill those vines again."

There was no answer, only the wind whispering to the growing grass about the latest news. Chad whirled around. Fauna was off...off towards the mountain.

_Stubborn as always...one day she's going to get us killed..._

Chad hurried after her before she got to the stone bridge connecting the tall border to the rocks they had just emerged from. He jumped from one rock to the other in hopes of catching up, but one rock tumbled down, giving him a bad angle to jump from. He soared through the air ready for hard impact, but he dropped down towards the side, and slammed into roughly. He clenched the edge, holding on tightly. With the strength he had left, he got up and rushed after her. It was nearly nightfall. Fauna's parents would be worried, and she was running further away. Right before Fauna was at the edge, Chad caught up to her. Grabbing her by the ankle, she stopped and turned around.

"I thought you were leaving?"

"I thought you remembered that your parents are at home worried sick because you haven't come back and you are about to jump over the mountains like a lunatic to get in trouble with foreigners who will take you to that land and ask you all sorts of questions and when they get what they want, will kill you?" Chad gushed

Fauna stopped. She hadn't remembered how long it had been since she had gotten back, It was true, her parents would be worried sick.

"Y-you're right...I-I...just wanted to explore!"

"You've explored enough for one day. Now come on, we don't have time."

They hurried back to the cave and climbed over top, running across a rigid, barren rock slab.

XoXoXoXoX

A few hours later, Fauna and Chad were back at her house. Apparently Faunas's parents were out at the village. Fauna quickly changed out of her dust coated garments and took a bath upstairs. Chad remained in the kitchen looking for a piece of fruit he could have. In a few moments, Fauna was down the stairs in a new outfit. It was a green dress with cotton outlines, and black boots. She had her hair loose, draping her shoulder. She pushed it off her shoulder and let it fall down. In her hair was a small broach with a golden and green butterfly.

"Do you like it? It's not what I'm going to the ball with, I have something more beautiful than this. What do you think of it?"

Chad shrugged. "Looks more for traveling than searching for your parents. They might be at my home asking Zack if he knew where we went."

"Right, and then you can change out of that mess and into something more casual." Fauna agreed. Chad scoffed.

_Sure, I'm a mess..._

"Well come on Chad, let's go."

"Yeah, sure." They left the house, walking back to town.

* * *

**Gah! Of course, of course, of course, of course! Of course I had to forget to finish writing this chapter and ended up sending it 9 in the morning on a _Friday_. Yes a Friday! Disaster strikes! But I'll get over it, you won't begrudge me because of that :-] right? Anyways, how'd you like the chapter? Was it good? Review! Was it bad? Review! Did I make a mistake? Review!**

** Did you see my _poll _on my profile yet? Go ahead and vote! Go check! Anyways, I forgot to 'sign out' yesterday. And now I have to go. I hope you like the chapter!  
**

_**Yours truly,**_

**AuthorPen11**


	9. Flashback

**Hey! Hi everyone! It's me again! I'm glad to bring you another update today! But I'm also hurling myself across the room for forgetting to write more sooner! I guess I need to take a break or something... well whatever. I'll get right back to the chapter. Luckily, since I'm writing my synopsis, in two short paragraphs I can figure out where I am :)  
**

* * *

**Chapter 9**

Of course as soon as they made it back to Chad's home, Fauna's parents were nowhere to be seen. When Chad unlocked the house, he figured that Zack wasn't there either.

"I'll go change quickly out of this. Stay put." Chad ordered.

Fauna sat on one of the stools and studied the simply decorated room. She was by a round table, and not far from it was a door. On both sides of it were bookshelves filled with books and various ornaments. Hand painted pictures hung here and there, and a small potted plant made its home by the staircase. It was different from her bedroom. Her room was neat and clean. Everything was placed exactly where they belonged everyday, not moving to another location unless deemed necessary. In a short moment, Chad came back down the stairs.

"Are you ready to go now? There's nothing more we can do. Maybe Kiara's aunt might know where they went. Or where Kiara is." Chad said, opening the door and leaving. Fauna followed and they made their way towards her home. It was a half hour walk, so a conversation immediately sparked.

"Hey, Fauna, I was wondering how you first found that cavern. It's really big and is strangely...off. I just don't feel right after going in that place. It was like something was wrong. And you got rid of that amulet...didn't you?"

Fauna paused for a moment. She hadn't gotten rid of the amulet. In fact, she left it at her home. And the cavern...she remembered a bit.

"Well, it was a little something like this..."

_...X-Flashback-X..._

_Fauna and her father were clearing their 'storage cave' of junk when they stopped for a break. Fauna was tired of lifting things and organizing stuff. She wanted to practice with her skills and move things with her spells. But her father insisted that she use her muscles and not waste time with 'petty magic'. Annoyed, Fauna began searching for an area to practice secretly. About a few days later, her father was called to a town meeting. Leaving her alone to clear out parts of it, Fauna began exploring. After a while, she was in the back of the cave, where a couple boxes had been stacked carelessly. She searched each box, clearly confused to see nothing in it. For that was some food supplies she had hidden for a journey, like those days she said she would run away. But instead, all her meals she stored were gone, and some crumbs were on the ground. An odd scent seemed to swirl around her. Moving the boxes, she discovered a large hole. Curiously, she crawled in, examining the tunnels. She didn't go far before she remembered that she had other things to do. After two hours of wandering, she found her way out again. Exhausted, she pushed the boxes back where they were and left._

_Not long after opening the tunnel, weeds had sprouted up in her mom's garden. They had hired someone to take care of it, but after a while, it just grew to be a pain. The hired hand had said he heard strange noises and insisted that they leave their garden. Fauna didn't believe him though, and walked into her mother's garden and began searching for the source. She was about to give up when she heard something behind her. Whirling around, she was knocked to the ground by a strange vine. She had run off, and fell sick the next few days. Every night she couldn't sleep. The vine seemed to haunt her dreams. After extreme training with her magic, she found out that the vine had disappeared. It was gone, and her mom's garden returned back to normal. But that didn't mean that the vine stopped haunting her. Every night, she could hear something in the storage room scrapping at wood and rock. She knew what it was. It was out to get her._

_...X-End of Flashback-X...  
_

"and that's why I ran off like I did when I saw that vine. I just knew it was the same type, and that it was out to get me."

"O-o-out to get you?" Chad said, whirling around in confusion.

* * *

Kiara finally awoke to see the stars overhead. She tried to sit up, but a shot of pain prevented her from moving. She fumbled with her wind chilled clothes and wrapped them around her blue shoulders. Carefully, she trudged towards the bridge back to the village. The cold wind whirled Kiara's hair, blowing it in all directions. After a long, painful struggle, Kiara had made it to the bridge. Using her energy to balance herself, she slowly walked across the rope bridge. It shook and wobbled, moved and swayed. She had crossed the bridge just before a strong gust tossed it roughly in the air. It remained put, thanks to the strong rope nailed down in the dirt.

She continued walking home, and ignored some of the confused gestures of the people she walked by. Kiara knew she was definitely sick, she could feel every breeze, everything _breath _go past her, and with each touch, she shivered. About halfway through the village, someone tapped her on the shoulder.

"A-achoo!" Kiara sneezed as the fingers whipped back. She turned slowly to see Fauna's parents, and Zack, Chad's brother.

"Oh...Kiara, have you seen Fauna? Her parents are worried." Zack replied, scanning her. "You look cold, why don't I get you some tea?"

"N-no thank you." Kiara replied, sniffing, "I-I'm just fine."

"Well, Kiara, have you seen our Fauna? She hasn't come back yet. In fact, when we searched for her, she was nowhere to be seen, so we _assumed _she was with you and Chad, but after visiting his brother, we found out that she wasn't there either, and neither was Chad. So we went to seek out your aunt and...well we found you, and dear you look utterly awful!" Fauna's mother asked

"Oh, I was just heading home...a-and I haven't seen Fauna, I was heading over to your house to see if Fauna was still there because...well because Fauna said she wanted to show me something."

"Show you something? What?"

"I don't know...I got sidetracked. I'll be heading home if you don't mind, but please, come along." Kiara said, hurrying back to her humble abode. In a few minutes, they were at the door, where Kiara knocked softly.

Mila's expression was one of pure horror. She rushed her niece to the bathroom to wash, and then escorted the guests inside, shutting out the chilly breeze. As Kiara waited for the water to warm up as she sat by the fire, she heard the adults (and Zack) chatting.

"So they aren't here...where could they be? I told Fauna not to go that far..." muttered Fauna's father.

"I checked everywhere at my home, I don't have a single clue. The only thing that leads up is that he was headed to your daughter for something. And so was Kiara. Maybe she forgot. But I'm sure we might be able to find out if we stir some memories back into Kiara. But wait until she is warm. I don't think it'd be nice to be bombarded with questions before a hot bath." Zack's voice echoed.

Kiara got up and headed into the bathroom, dropping the cold garments on the floor and slipping into the warm, comforting bath. Kiara tensed up when the hot water made contact with her cold skin, but after a while, she relaxed. But what couldn't get off her mind was:

_Where were they?_

* * *

**And...done! Hope you like it! Please review! - Edit: Sorry, I was in such a rush. Thanks all for reviewing. If you see any errors, I will head back and fix them. -  
**

**Yours truly, enjoying a winter wonderland,**

**AuthorPen11**


	10. The Night Before The Celebration

**I'm just going to make this author's note short, but I also remembered I need to reply to those reviews in the past two chapters so...**

**IreneT447**** -** _Thanks for reviewing! Sorry I wasn't able to get to your review to chapter 8 sooner, but that just so happens to happen like that. I'm glad to see that my first story is coming along nicely, it's good to know. Oh that's great. Chad's is obviously the most interesting to write about now, and Kiara is changing slightly since the begin of the story. Fauna is the same old happy person, but in a few chapters...I don't think so. Now for last week's chapter... Yeah that vine is bad, but we'll just make sure it doesn't come back, especially since it's after Fauna...but why is it going wild? I have no clue, but I wonder what maybe the deal with that trinket she snatched a few chapters ago... OH and Fauna's name? I was more of leaning towards 'Fawna' because when we first met her she was sort of shy, but I wrote it as 'Fauna' instead so that's how it turned out. But now that I think about it, I hadn't even realized that when I wrote about her garden story (face palm) so I should make sure I have my thread and tacks connected to the right lines so I don't have a mess. Thanks for reviewing!_

**Legendoffun**** -** _From a couple chapters ago (Ch. 8 _) _I remembered I hadn't fully answered your question (what time period and if they'll see Link and Zelda). That's still in the question, because this is sort of in between games, so I don't necessarily have a specific time period for them (but all I can say is that it isn't even close to post-SS). As for seeing Link and Zelda, we'll just have to find out. Now up to chapter 9, I'm glad you were able to review. I'm just fine here, and thanks for telling me to fix it - I should have known my perfect chapter wasn't perfect (HOW COULD I FORGET TO SPELL MY NAME RIGHT?!). Anyways, thanks LoF._

**And that concludes the reviews. Remember readers, if you get your review in by Wednesday or before 7:15 Thursday, I'll be sure to add it to the current chapter. Add a favorite or follow before the next chapter, I'll send you a shout-out. If I forget to send the chapter in Thursday and throw it in on Friday, I'll hurl myself into a wall and make sure it's extra long and 'sweet'. Meanwhile, the current chapter awaits (are you excited? It's my tenth chapter!).**

* * *

**Chapter 10 **

_Whatever is taking them so long, I hope they hurry. And they better be safe. I'm not being interrogated because they couldn't wait for me - and because I did break my promise...  
_

Kiara remained in deep thought as she poured the cold bath water outside in the small pond beside their house. She walked back inside and began to brush the knots out of her hair. About a couple moments later, something sparkly leapt out of her hair and spun across the floor.

_What's that?_

She picked up the small thing, it was obviously a necklace of some sort. The charm was a rainbow feather on a black thread surrounded by silver. Kiara furrowed her eyebrows. She remembered that there was something about this necklace that wasn't good. But if she gave this to Ziri and the town went into an uproar, she might mess up the festival coming up **tomorrow**. In her silent thoughts, the door to her room opened. Foolishly, Kiara flung the thing across the room and right into her festival outfit. Every girl was going to wear the tradition festival female uniform on the first day, and when night came, they switched to their own select dresses and danced as the sunset. Then when the star was to appear, everyone would slowly dance...and well sometimes you have to see what could happen.

"What was that?" Aunt Mila asked, obviously seeing something dart through the air, "are you alright?"

"I'm fine, just was taking out knots in my hair, that's all." Kiara replied, "have you found them yet?"

"About that, would you mind coming with me?"

_Of course now they'll ask me plenty of questions, but I forget what that necklace was supposed to mean. I remember something about it during class but exactly what it was is a blur. A terrible smudge of memories._

As Kiara absentmindedly walked after Mila and down the stairs into the living room, she stopped.

"What was it..." she muttered.

At this, the adults looked up, puzzled.

"What are you talking about?"

"Oh..." Kiara mentally slapped herself, "I'm sorry I was just thinking about tomorrow. Do you think they might be back and are searching the marketplace for you?"

"But we left a note. Why would she think that?"

"Maybe she didn't get the note..."

* * *

_This has to be the worst day of my life and the dumbest decision of my life. Why did we go in on the night before the celebration? Why did I have to be so stupid!  
_

Fauna kicked a couple stones in front of her path as she continued on to the last place she expected them to be at, which was Kiara's place.

"If they aren't there, then they definitely left town. I'm just hoping they aren't going to our old training spot and then to the mountains. That wouldn't be good at all. The search would be longer. As soon as we are done, we are going back and sealing up that hole. I don't want those vines to escape...you already know what would happen." Fauna chatted, back and forth, "it'd be a problem for us, and maybe even the town. And then we'd have to get a few people to help with clearing the vines, and then my parents will explore, and then it'd be no fun at all...and I'd get it trouble, and they'll seal up the hole with most of my discoveries, and the new passageways we have yet to discover."

"Honestly Fauna, I hope they do seal up that...hole."

Fauna could tell that he was about to add something to the title of the tunnel. She grimaced, imagining what he might say (but glad he didn't say anything). Chad could become extremely cross and negative when annoyed, probably in a bad mood because of earlier. But he would get over it. Like he always did.

She too, hoped they would seal up the hole...but after she discovered everything to it. It was interesting...there was just something about it that made her shiver with fear and excitement. Something she hadn't felt before she first told her parents she wanted to train as a sheikah. But of course, instead, they wanted her to be a sorceress, or a village healer. The only way she was let in, was if she promised to only use the arts of the sheikah for self-defense, and only at training. Other than that, she was basically banned from using it at home. Her parents didn't even like the idea of her leaving home. Like what would happen at the end of the month...

"Well, Chad...I think we are almost there. Let's hurry, if we make it in time, we'll be able to find them before they leave again." Fauna said, waving him along. Chad didn't respond, but slowly trudged on behind her until they arrived at the door. She stopped and took a couple breaths.

_But what do I say? What can I tell them? The truth? A lie? I don't like lying to them, and dad will know instantly...and I can get in trouble and might not be able to do the ceremonial dance like I wished...I have to tell the truth, even if it means..._

Chad realized why she hesitated. What would he say? There was plenty of things he could come up with on the spot, but his brother was probably there, and Fauna's parents would know that he wasn't telling the truth.

_It's not my fault so they shouldn't question me. She'll just say we were playing - ahem training, in the storage place. 'Training, why?' They'll ask. I'll reply, with jumping tactics. Safe and perfect._

Fauna knocked on the door, confidence swelling in her veins. She knew that she only had one chance at redeeming herself or feeling guilty the rest of the festival. She knew what she would do. She knew what the right thing was. She would tell the truth, and nothing else.

* * *

**And we end the chapter with a cliffhanger - and Fauna's going to tell the truth. If there's any errors, let me know in the comments below, 'cause helping a friend out goes a long way you know (and rhymes are weird). If you have a flame or review, throw in the box and send, but cursing definitely isn't the way to go (none so far which is good). For those that are reading it and haven't reviewed, please do! That would be so nice and brighten my day - the winter seems to make me moody... other than that, I'm off. But before I 'sign out' and leave, go to my profile and vote in the poll! If you don't have account, check the choices, and then write it in the reviews! Remember, one of the choices is not die in a hole so, bye!  
**

_**Yours truly,**_

**AuthorPen11  
**


	11. A Strange Dream?

**Hi, I'm back with another update on this Twisting Thursday enjoying the sweet taste of updating on time. Other than that, I'm loving the reviews I'm getting. Please keep it up! If you follow, favorite, flame or review, that's fine with me! Makes my story a lot better and helps me write greater ones in the future.  
**

**Legendoffun -** _Thank you! As I said before, it doesn't exactly have a time period, but it is probably better left at post-Skyward Sword by like...I don't know, 700 years? And about that error, I went back and fixed that because you're right. I met brighten my day, not dad -sorry dad. Well as for Fauna, you'll find out what is going on, and there's a good chance that Chad isn't going to get away with it...especially since he will be lying and Fauna telling the truth. Well, meh, you'll see..._

**And that's all the reviews I reviewed by Thursday 8:30 AM. I will be making last second checks for reviews, so please do send them in if you want a happy reply. It also makes me more relaxed and less rushed when I write each chapter. Anyways, chapter (AP) eleven, here we come!**

* * *

**Chapter 11  
**

The knock on the door startled all of the adults. The first one to get up was 'Aunt' Mila, because it was her home after all. When she opened the door though...she was greatly surprised.

"Fauna! Chad! There you are? Where have you been? Your parents - and your brother - has been looking everywhere for you!"

Chad shrugged, "sorry, just went exploring a little longer than we should have."

"Exploring?" Fauna's father asked, "where, may I ask?"

Chad glanced at Fauna, "in the storage of course. We decided to play a game of camouflage [_or hide and go seek_]."

"Really?" Zack was unconvinced. He stared right at the two crossly, "you must have hid real well and had so much fun to be hiding for _hours_. 5 hours, I'll tell you."

Chad mentally slapped himself [_or face-palmed_].

_Right...we had no idea how long we had been down there, so our excuses could be absolutely useless. We couldn't say we are training, or Fauna would have trouble back at home, and I don't think that's the best way to go around in. But what's Fauna going to say._

Chad glanced at Fauna for a moment before spotting Kiara looking at the two in helplessness.

_Why is she looking at me? She could have already told them everything for all I know. And it's not my fault that Fauna wouldn't let me straighten myself up before we left or anything. My hair is a mess...hold on...why is Fauna's mother looking at me?_

"Chad, what's that in your hair?" She questioned.

Of course now he knew what she was talking about. There was a few shards of vine in his hair. Before she got close to him though, he pulled everything out - a few bits of his own hair by mistake - and tossed it into the fire, smirking when they sizzled. Fauna stared at him bewildered.

"Well...I can explain." Fauna began.

Chad glared at her.

_You can explain at your own home Fawn, I've got a few problems at home to deal with, and being here scolded by a bunch of adults is not my style at all..._

But Fauna ignored him and continued.

"You see, we had been in the storage area...and we found a couple of stacks crates in the corner." Fauna paused, to let them absorb the information, " and we moved them and found a tunnel behind it. And I wanted us, me, Chad and Kiara, to go explore it. I had explored it earlier...but me and Chad kind of got lost."

"What happened to Kiara?" Aunt Mila asked.

Everyone looked at Kiara.

She gritted her teeth. She hadn't thought that they would ask something like that, and she didn't want everyone to be in a panic over her safety right before the festival, so she tried to play it simple.

"I lost track of time while I did some extra training. Sorry." She mumbled.

She may have convinced some of the adults, but she didn't convince herself. If she had gone either way she would be in trouble. And if she hadn't...would she have a different fate?

Fauna continued, "so while we were traveling around in circles we found an exit that led to -"

"- to a open field, and we saw the town from the distance and turned back and walked all the way back. And then stopped to see where you were, and then when we couldn't find you two, we went to my home and checked, and you weren't there either, so we went everywhere else until we came here and found you all over at Kiara's home." Chad interrupted.

_We aren't going to include anything about the mountains, and Hyrule. That's just asking for trouble. Then they'll want us to show them, and then we have more problems...and I want to be worry-free during the festival, so I'm not letting her go any further._

Fauna glanced at him in bewilderment. She thought he was going to tell the truth as well, but she had forgot about Chad's nature. If you get away with it the simple way, forget the long, truthful way. Or at least, that was what he was like sometimes...

"Oh really? That explains it." Fauna's father replied, "the plain is about a two hours walk from here. Alright, that's it. We are heading home, come on dear, Fauna."

Chad and Zack left soon after, a private discussion had erupted between the two, and here was not the place to chat.

When all was silent for a moment, Mila looked at Kiara.

"You're friends with those two? That's nice. They have a lot of potential. But why again couldn't you make it there? I thought you were headed in the _opposite _direction of the training spot?"

"Well, I remembered that I forgot something," Kiara let out a fake yawn, " and I...was going to get it before I left because they told me to bring it."

"Bring what?"

"A few pieces of paper that's all. Anyways, good night." Kiara muttered, heading up the stairs.

* * *

As Fauna laid in bed that night, she couldn't help but hear something calling her name. She drifted off into sleep, exhausted.

...

_Fauna opened her eyes, grogginess seemed to hold her down on her bed. She struggled to get up, but she just couldn't move. She heard something scratching on her bedroom. She had a couple of thoughts of what it could be, but she didn't think about it to much. She finally managed to get out of bed and place her feet on the wooden floor. A chill went down her spine as a cold breeze swept through her room. She shivered. Slowly, Fauna walked over to the door and let out a tired sigh. After a moment, her body had registered that she was up and ready to move. As Fauna's hands clutched the doorknob, she realized something. It was slimy. Why was it **slimy**? Her eyes widened in alarm when she realized she was standing in a pool of slime. She slammed the door open and rushed out into the hallway._

_"Mom! Dad!" She yelled, panic filling her voice. She bolted down the stairs and into the kitchen to see everything encased in green orbs of some sort of plasma. She heard something fly a few inches away from her arm, and widened it in horror to see a slime covered vine. It retracted back to itself, and Fauna turned around to see a few plants moving towards her, their stems covered in a sickly purple liquid, creeping toward her. Fauna's mind blanked out on all protection spells, and she rushed towards the door. She tried the knob, but it wouldn't budge. She whirled around and just dodged a attempt to kill her when she heard something...or someone...calling her name. She rushed down the hallways and into the living room to see a cracked window. Fauna tried to use a magic spell to shatter the window, but it was if it didn't work. Something was definitely wrong._

_Fauna whirled around to see what looked like someone covered in slimy, vicious vines. 'Embrace your true self...' it whispered. Fauna tried to yell, but her voice wouldn't come out. She felt trapped. And she couldn't move. The air had stopped flowing, and she felt like she couldn't tried to move, to keep herself up, to feel some energy in her veins. No magic. No life. No movement. She was done. Suddenly, as the vine crept toward her, she felt herself glow strangely green, and then a wave of refreshment filled her body. She also felt warm, and comfortable. There was no slime on her anymore. The house did no longer feel dark. And before her...was the normal house._

_What...what had happened?_

* * *

Fauna tossed and turned in her sleep before letting out a yell. She opened her eyes to find herself staring at her ceiling. When she noticed what happened, she fell through the air and dropped on a pile of clothes. Fauna was definitely startled. She didn't know what was up with her dream and what was going on. But she did realized that there was some activity in the hallway and that she felt odd. Fauna stumbled to stand up before looking in the mirror. What surprised her was a whole new appearance. Her grass-green hair had a few strands of brown hair, and her eyes... her hazel eyes had a ting of pink. Fauna couldn't help but utter a shriek. Little did she know, that it was still late at night, and she was disturbing everyone's sleep.

* * *

**Well, I guess we'll find out in a couple of chapters aye? Oh well, you can just review and try to guess, I love to hear those. So remember everyone, review before Thursday 8:30 AM to see your review here in the latest chapter! Anyways, I hope you enjoyed this chapter!  
**

**Yours truly,**

_**AuthorPen11**_

_**AP11**_


	12. A New Look

**I settled down into my comfy chair and sighed. It's now time to work on WotST. As I shuffled through my things, I noticed something odd. When did I get 22 reviews again? After a through check, I gasped (GASP!). Someone else reviewed! And Followed and Favorited! And that other kind person was...(drum-roll) Libby8980! Thank you for reviewing on the first chapter, so don't forget to read the rest (if you are reading this current chapter, I dunno...), but as always, you get a shout out for the follow and favorite...  
**

**A shout out to Libby8980, _Thanks for reviewing, and I'm glad you like the story - means a bunch. Updates every Thursday, and if you review before Thursday at 8:30, you can see your review being answered!_**

**Besides that, I have my helpful (thank you all so much) reviewers finding any errors that just leaps over the gate.  
**

**A review to my reviewers xP**

**Legendoffun: _Well actually, I believe your review made it right on time. I'm glad you liked the chapters and the decision Fauna made, and the answers Chad came up with. Those few errors you spotted I went back over and corrected them - if you haven't found out yet. Thanks for being my local grammar helper, it helps a lot. Thanks Legendoffun :) Ah...and Fauna's dream...I guess we'll find out, shall we?_**

**And that's the reviews I received before Thursday, so let's go on!**

* * *

**Chapter 12  
**

Fauna shut her mouth when she realized that the sun was still down, and she could barely see in the dark. She whirled about when she realized that her door was open, and her parents were in the hall.

"Fauna? Is something wrong?"

"I-its...oh, no it's nothing. I'm sorry I woke you up." She mumbled.

"All right, but try not to scream so loud OK? You'll scare away birds like that." Her mom replied, hurrying back off to bed. Fauna jumped back in bed and squeezed her eyes shut.

_It will go away. When I actually do wake up, it will be gone. I will not have to suffer this again. No, it won't happen. It won't happen..._

Fauna eventually fell asleep, worry and concern covered her face.

...

In the morning, the sun was up in the sky when Fauna cracked her eyes open. She felt refreshed, but a little odd. She stretched out her arms and slid out of bed. She shuffled over to the mirror and gasped. It was still there. But instead of her hair being green...it was brown with the end of it being light green and dark green. Her eyes remained the same. Fauna hurried over to check her hair all around. There was no doubt about it. She was changing for some reason. Fauna was heading to the door when she stumbled on a pile of clothes she tossed last night. She stood up. On top was the outfit she wore when she and Chad were exploring. It glimmered. She picked it up and reached in the pockets. There was nothing in them.

She headed over to her back and reached into the bottom, pulling out her journal with the map, and then the trinket she had taken. It became an odd shape. One of a flower. And when she placed it in the palm of her hand, it became dust and disappeared in her hand. That's when Fauna felt the same funny feeling.

_Why do I have a bad feeling about this?_

Fauna quickly changed into something nice and braided her hair. She would changed into her real dress after the ceremony. She tossed the clothes into a basket for cleaning, opened the door, and shoved it outside. Fauna jumped over it and shut the door behind her. She dashed down the stairs, hoping to reach Chad first. Or Kiara.

"Alright Fauna, what did you do to your hair?" She heard behind her. Fauna stopped in her tracks.

"I-I don't know..."

"You dyed it didn't you?"

"No, I don't know. I can't explain anything."

"Does this happen to be about last night?"

"A bit. But I have to go. I promised Chad that I'd meet up. Alright?"

Fauna's mother sighed reluctantly. "Alright, but don't you run off like that again."

"Thanks mom." She gave her a light squeeze and rushed off towards the town. She scurried on faster until she was passing the market at a good pace. About a couple of meters down the road was Chad walking along. She skidded to a stop.

"Chad!"

"Uh, I know you right...?"

"Yes, it's me Fauna!"

"Why'd you dye your hair brown? It was better -"

"Come on Chad, I can't explain any of that besides the thing about that trinket. Do you remember what it looked like?"

"Well sort of, it had swirls of green, blue, and brown. If sort of looked like grass and a pearl for the design...anything else you wanted?"

"No...that's it! That's the problem. See you at the library!"

"The library? Why?" Chad questioned, rushing after her.

...

Kiara slept soundly, her face buried in a pillow. She was comfortable in the warm bed. But she was having a strange dream.

_A arrow flew through the windows and pushed one of Aunt Mila's family pots to the floor. Kiara had rushed down the stairs only to see a few more come flying in with all of them carrying bits of gunpowder. Kiara rushed around the house to find Aunt Mila, but she was nowhere to be found. She rushed out of the house and looked at the town. Smoke was rising from it...and it was dark. The wishing star never appeared. And then she heard a shrieking._

_"Aunt Mila?" She called. A cold wind swept around her, chilling her to the bone. She chattered her teeth and looked at the house. And then she saw her. In the kitchen, she saw her frightened Aunt. And then a fire arrow dashed in, and a blast pushed Kiara off her feet and headlong into mud. She couldn't get up. She could feel that she had a wound on her forehead. Her mind fought to stay up, to stay awake. She saw in the distance a faint light. It glimmered it shined. It begged for her to get up._

_"Kiara...get up!"_

_"Kiara...WAKE UP!"_

Kiara fell out of the bed and the blankets followed her.

"Oh good, you are up."

She sat up and sighed to see Aunt Mila. Sweat covered Kiara's face, her hair was wildly tossed, and it was obvious that she had a bad dream.

"Kiara, you look horrible. Go take a shower, and if you feel like, tell me about your dream. Breakfast is almost ready."

"A-alright." Kiara stumbled to stand up and shakily headed to the tub. She grabbed it and poured water in it before dragging it by the fire to warm up. She sighed and began to change and hop in. She felt more comfortable when she was in the water. She began to wash when the water was warm and finished quickly by the time it was hot. She jumped out and dried herself before walking to her room to get dress. She twisted her hair until it had waves at the ends. She dressed in a simple dress and let her real dress air out. She put on boots and walked down the stairs to eat.

"I'm assuming you are feeling better. Now about that dream."

"Aunt Mila...I rather not talk about it. It was nothing of importance really."

"Oh?" She said, taking the rest of the dishes to get them washed. "Alright. But remember. Some dreams can be _visions_."

Kiara shivered. She hoped this one wasn't. NO. She **wished **this was a dream. She hurried to wash her dishes before waving 'bye' and hurrying off to the library. She still had to find out what that rainbow feather meant. She darted through the crowds until she was by a small building with a sign of a book. She slowed down to a walk and trotted into the library, immediately heading to the history section. She flipped through each book searching for the same image. There was a few books she hadn't checked yet. She flipped through them and got the same result. If only she was in a library in Hyrule. Maybe they might know...

Someone tapped her on the shoulder. She turned and saw Chad flipping through books and someone was standing in front of her. She was confused.

"It's me...Fauna!"

"You dyed your hair?"

"No! I promised I didn't!"

"Alright, spill."

"Well, when me and Chad went exploring...I found this shiny trinket, - or amulet, whatever you want to call it - in a pool of water. I took it out, and I woke up this morning like this. I was searching through the library books about magical possessing items, and this thing...was actually called the stone of Gaia."

"No way..."

"Yes...seriously, it says it here." Fauna pointed in the book. "That's it right there. And for some strange reason, my magic just feels off. Like...I can't use any."

"Did you ever try?"

"Well, I don't recall actually trying..."

"Well try!"

_"Shh!" _The library hissed. Kiara hushed herself. Fauna covered her mouth.

"Maybe here isn't the best place to talk and try it out." Chad suggested.

"Alright, let's head to the park."

* * *

**Dun dun dun, cliffhanger sort of? Well anyways, thank you all for reviewing! It means a bunch, even if you are leaving flames (none so far, which means I'm doing well). Thank you all for reading, and I hope to see you later! Please enjoy the story!  
**

_**Yours truly,**_

**AuthorPen11**


	13. No Magic?

**Yeah! Another chapter and I had plenty of time to spare. Honestly, if I'm not busy, I write it on Wednesday just because it is less stressful and gives me plenty of time to chill &amp; relax. An off subject question, but I do have a couple of fanfictions I do plan on writing. One of them is a MLP fanfiction. I do plan on sending it out once I am one third done with this story. The reason why is because I don't want to stress myself out with updating multiple stories. Once I'm one third done with this story, you might get extra long chapters (I don't know, 5,000 - 10,000 words?) but maybe a update once a week depending on how I feel. But so far, this is only chapter 13, and I believe chapter 25 will mark the half point line. By then there should be chapters that are at least - I said at least - two thousands words each. Anyways, I'd like to answer those kind reviews, but first...a shoutout!  
**

**Shoutout to Charvx: I'm soooo glad you like the story! And I do love how you appreciate my story. About Link though, it is nice to get a break every now and then, but I don't know *shrugs* my favorite characters are more of side characters, but I do still love having Link :) I'm glad you like the pairing name (Chadiara ;) ) My inspirations for the story is pretty basic. Give a fresh new story with lifelike characters. I'd believe I've added a bit of me to every character. Stubborn Kiara, denying Chad, excited Fauna, the list goes on :D Anyways, I think this might've been my longest shoutout yet. Thanks for reviewing!**

**And of course I wouldn't forget my loyal reviewers :D**

**Legendoffun (The Spellcheck Warrior): **_Thank you so much for reviewing (again)! It totally means a lot to see faithful reviewers supporting me - and correcting me - every step of the way. It makes every story worthwhile to see another review give advice and good cheer! I'm glad I had no problems with the spelling, I just hate my missing spellcheck...I guess I'll have to use Google or something. I guess they might leave at chapter 15 but I think it might be a few chapters longer...anyways, thanks for reviewing!_

**Libby8980 (A New Friendly Face):** _Yeah! You made it up to the current chapter without missing a pancake! Alright! I'm glad you liked the story, it is great to know I'm not alone updating :D Yep, no cliffhangers for chapter 12, and I already finished my 'AP'11 lucky chapter, so let's go for the offical half-lucky and in some ways bad *shrugs again* number 13!_

* * *

**Chapter 13  
**

Chad, Kiara and Fauna hurried out of the library because the librarian wasn't exactly having a great day. True, some books had gone missing a few messed up, but it didn't mean he needed to go all 'hissy' on them. That's what Chad said anyways. As the group moved on to their old training spot, Kiara started a conversation.

"I'm sorry I couldn't help you two yesterday, I got a little...off track. You'll forgive me right?"

"Of course! We shouldn't have gone on without you." Fauna glared at Chad.

Chad shrugged. "Didn't matter anyways." He muttered.

"So, what did you two find down there?"

Fauna stopped.

"Kiara, if you don't mind...I'd rather not talk about it."

"It's rather disturbing really...not exactly." Chad mumbled.

Kiara glanced at the two. "Well, never mind, let's hurry it along, I'd like to be able to change into the ceremonial dress nice and early. Isn't it nice to finally get to dance in those beautiful outfits? It means good luck you know."

"Yeah, yeah, whatever, luck never saved me." Chad grumbled. Kiara huffed.

"What's got you in such a flurry?" She questioned.

"It's probably because Chad has no one to dance with." Fauna snickered.

Chad didn't object. "So what if I don't have anyone to dance with, I don't need to be teased for taking someone so weak (no offense to Lady Impa) to dance and wish with together. I'll be old, alone, and happy wishing by myself."

Fauna and Kiara cringed.

"Alright, that's your choice, but I'm going to find someone amazing to dance with." Fauna dreamily sighed.

"That can wait Fawn, now it's time to try some of your magic...if you can." Kiara said. "We should start off with a few exercises, I haven't trained in a bit."

Chad settled down on a tree stump and stared off into space while the other two stretched and loosened their muscles. After a few moments, they were ready to go. Fauna settled into a fighting stance and Kiara began. She backed up and closed her eyes, trying to focus. After a few seconds, her hands were holding an small energy sphere. She was using magic to create 'Hylia's Sphere' which would be much stronger if she had practiced more. After all, she only had started using the spell yesterday.

Kiara launched the magic blast at Fauna. As it flew through the air, Fauna tried to create a magic shield but nothing worked. She flew into the air and hit the ground.

"Fauna! Sorry, are you alright?!" Kiara asked, rushing over.

"Er, I'm fine." Fauna dusted herself off. She stood back up. "Try something tougher, I'm sure I just wasn't focusing."

"Alright, but tell me when you are done." Kiara backed away. She focused on something that used less magic and began to make a crystal dart. They flew through the air at Fauna but instead of using magic, Fauna dodged.

"Fauna...are you alright?"

"I'm fine...it's just...I can't feel anything. I can't feel the magic presence of anything. I feel odd. Maybe...maybe...maybe Chad should try."

Chad's ears perked up.

"If you can't defend yourself from Kiara's _puny _attacks, what makes you think my advanced skills will help?" Chad asks

"Maybe I'll kick back into gear, come on." Fauna said. Chad got up and walked into a fighting stance.

"Are you ready?"

"Yeah I don't need to be told -"

Chad launched a few magic spheres into the air and tossed them one by one until they surrounded Fauna. She rolled out of the way and narrowly dodged his magic spheres that came flying after that. He jumped into the air and tossed a few needles. Fauna could hear them fly by and rolled right out of the way when a dart nearly collided with her shoulder. She was confused to find herself already gasping for air. She hoped she hadn't been relying on her magic to much when she was young...

Fauna was knocked to the ground after she was hit by a magic sphere.

"Are you sure you're still ready?" Chad asked, sitting back on the stump again, "you look spent."

"I'm...*huff*...fine, I can...*huff, huff*, I can take another round. Just...*huff*, let me catch *huff* my breath..." Fauna panted, sitting up.

Chad and Kiara (for once in a while) exchanged confused glances.

"Fauna, are you sure you can handle this? I mean, you _do _look exhausted, I think you should take a break."

"No...*huff*, I'm fine. I can fight. I'm not going to give up. My magic **will **come back."

"Alright then. Let's start."

* * *

Fauna couldn't believe it. Why hadn't her magic come back? She had tried a few more matches with Chad and Kiara, but nothing worked. She didn't get what was going on. She tried so hard, but the only thing that happened was getting herself hurt more. She headed to the spa resort to rest and relax. It was after the lunch frenzy, and many people were starting to head into the spas to relax and recover after a long day of work to get ready for the festival. Fauna changed out of her sweaty uniform and hurried to a peaceful place by a few rocks. They had been hand polished to perfection before being placed into the spas. They were nice and warm, and sometimes they could be used for hot stones to relax those aches away. Fauna settled into the water and let out a frustrated sigh.

Was she magic-less? Why wasn't anything working?

_Maybe I'm not thinking the right way. Maybe I need to think about what that book said. It did say that the Stone of Gaia was different from most magic amulets. There was something about that most people couldn't figure out. But what was it?_

Fauna huffed. Maybe she could find out later. Besides, it was getting a bit late and she didn't want to soak in the water to long. Her skin easily absorbed water and would become wrinkly. She jumped out and dried off, putting on mint cream to give her nice, silky skin. She looked in the mirror at her hair. It remained the same. She began to braid part of her hair, and the rest she tied up with a green ribbon. It looked nice. Fauna got up and placed the white dress with cream lace on. It was clean and beautiful. She didn't want to ruin it, so she took it back off and put it away in her bag. She put back on her clean clothes and headed back into town to see what was going on.

Every time there was a festival, the graduates of the classes would be the main dancers. It was always dazzling, but it was also a lot of work. Every two days, the dancers would have to practice the dances required for each parade. Fauna was heading there. She knew Kiara and Chad would be there, since they graduated. And Nova. Nova! She hadn't spoken to her since she had been placed on the team with Kiara and Chad. They could catch up! She wiped a tear from her eyes. She hadn't spoken to Nova in a while. She felt horrible. Nova had been there to support her and was her best friend. She hoped she hadn't changed. Why she was placed on a different team, she didn't know. Everyone knew Nova and Fauna had been inseparable. Or at least, they used too. Fauna stopped.

The last time she had talked to Nova, she hadn't taken it to kindly. She...she refused to talk to her. Was she...rejecting her old friend? Fauna shrugged it off. Nova had to have had a bad day. She couldn't have - no wouldn't have - rejected her best friend since childhood (BFSC).

Fauna rushed off to the Academy.

* * *

Kiara slowly whistled a theme that had been sang at the last festival. She couldn't exactly remember what it was called, but it was said that the hero who brought the people down to the earth (back then it had been called the Surface) and was used to aid him in purging the land from darkness. Kiara continued on. She couldn't believe she would be one of the top four dancers who had one of the most important roles. But she was dancing with someone there. It was kind of embarrassing. In the end, whoever she was dancing with was supposed to be inches, _inches _away from her face. Kiara knew she would be blushing. Good thing it'd be a male...

As Kiara continued to step lightly and whistle, she crashed into someone. After rubbing her head, she realized it was Chad. Did they have magnets for crashing into each other or what?

"Chad!" She said nervously, "I didn't see you there."

"It's pretty obvious Kiara...but, how are you doing?"

_He's in a strange mood today. I thought he was all bossy this morning? He probably can't contain his excitement...like me!_

"Ki?"

She had went off into a quick daydream.

"Oh, yes?" She blushed, "I'm sorry, I was just..."

"Daydreaming." They chorused. Chad looked at her. Kiara looked away.

"Uhm...you were saying?" She said, trying to change the subject.

"So I see you didn't bail out, I mean, you can't exactly dance with a partner yet."

"Yes I can! I practiced!"

"Oh alright, I thought you would bail out when you heard about the ending."

Kiara blushed slightly. "I'll get over it."

"Oh, alright then. We're here."

* * *

**Oh my Hyrule. That was like the hardest chapter I had to write besides the one involving their test (Chapter four I believe). I was trying so bad not to make it cheesy and start putting the postage stamp down on the two...well, we know what the ending will be like. How would you react if you had to do that dance? I mean, would you bail out? Let me know in the 'comments' below. Leave a review or if you forgot to sign in - two! Rhymes make me drop dimes...alrighty, see you later! I hope you enjoy this chapter, and if you see any errors, let me know (I know you are doing it LoF/SpellCheck Warrior)  
**

**Yours Truly,**

_**AuthorPen11**_


	14. Visions and A Battle

**Hi everyone! I'm sort of aggravated...I hate how the documents don't save your progress if you accidentally tap something else. Talk about annoying. But anyways, I have reviews to answer, and maybe later, shout outs to say. But anyways, **

**Legendoffun (The SpellCheck Warrior):** _I went back over the previous chapter and corrected those errors. Thanks for pointing them out. If you see any in this chapter, don't be afraid - you never have been, but you never know - to point them out. Especially if they are capitalization problems. I hate saying/writing 'kiara' unless that's something that actually isn't related to 'Kiara' my character. Anyways, hope to see you in Ponydale, or in the next chapter :)_

**Libby8980 (The Friendly Reviewer):** _Glad you could make it/review in the previous chapter! It's always nice to answer those kind/refreshing/brilliant reviews! Ah, to end a awkward conversation, a cat must fall out of the sky. Honestly, since I'm rolling with this story being post-Skywayd Sword, I'm hoping that isn't Mia, that 'devil' cat from Skyloft. That thing is nuts...__Or maybe it is the Nyan Cat...__anyways, thanks for reviewing, oh Friendly Reviewer :D_

**And with that over, we begin are next chapter.**

* * *

**Chapter 14**

Fauna and Kiara walked to the shower room to clean off the sweat that had accumulated after three hours of dancing and getting every detail straight. It was either Ziri was still controlling the pairings, or Hylia just thought Kiara and Chad made a cute couple, because, apparently, they were in one pair, while Fauna was with Felix, the boy from the test, were the other group. Kiara didn't like to ponder with all the disasters that could happen with Kiara and her dancing together. Maybe he'd toss her into the punch. Or drop her at the end like he did in practice. Or fall on her. The last one was the most dreadful of all for Kiara.

She was brought out of her thoughts when someone shouted out them.

"Hey! You two! Let's have a battle!"

They whirled around and came face to face with Ira, Raven, and Nova.

"Yeah, me and you Fauna." Nova announced, "let's see who has practiced more since the split?"

"Oh, Nova, if this is about the dance -"

"It has nothing to do with the dance! Now get ready."

"Ugh, fine."

_For one thing, she's gotten more stubborn..._

"It's a spell battle. First opponent to knock out someone out of this ring," Nova made a giant circle by magic, and then a middle line, "wins."

"Alright."

"The rules are simple, once you fall out, you lose. Spells are allowed for close combat. No interferences," Nova sent a nasty look Kiara's way, "and best of all, the winner gets one thing from the loser."

Kiara looked horrified. "What are you offering?"

"Oh, only a couple rupees."

"Sounds more like trouble if you ask me." Kiara muttered.

"Oh, in that case, I'll guess I'll give you...hmm, I don't have anything to give!" Fauna gasped, covering her face.

"That necklace of yours will look just fine on me." Nova declared.

"That...wait...what? I can't give that!"

"And why not?"

"It's just..."

"Alright, that's what you have to offer. Let's begin."

Fauna looked mortified. Even if she didn't know what the necklace was doing, she knew full well that handing someone a magic object was probably not a good idea. Apparently, Nova recognized her even though her hair had changed. Well, she was still hanging out with Chad and Kiara, so that's probably how she guessed.

Fauna and Nova stepped into the circle. Suddenly, the ground began to quake. Fauna stumbled forward and the platform hovered a few feet above the ground.

"Let's test who's better in three..."

_Keep it together Fauna, keep it together._

"Two..."

_We can do this..._

"One!"

Nova darted towards Fauna and used a Magic barrier to push her back. Fauna fell backwards, and the platform tilted. Fauna began to slowly slide down.

_So it's a balance platform! I see!_

Fauna jumped up and pushed Nova away and bounded towards the other part of the platform. She whirled around to see a couple of energy blasts coming her way. She skipped, hopped, back-flipped, and somersaulted to stay away from the destructive things. She launched herself up by a handstand and kicked Nova out of the sky, earning her a good bruise on the right cheek. Nova bit her lip, but stood back up.

"Your regular attacks aren't going to do much Fawn, I'll take you down! Hylia's Sphere!" A red glow formed in her hand and slowly began to get bigger. Fauna stopped. She could try to dodge it, but it would probably come back since Nova was so experienced. But what she didn't get, was why Nova's magic was red.

Fauna hadn't paid much attention, therefore she didn't see the energy blast fly towards her. She was knocked onto the edge, and was slightly paralyzed by shock. She tried to move, but her body wouldn't react. It was like she was somewhere else.

"Space matter!" Nova yelled, jumping down. Petrified, Fauna let out a shriek. A ferocious breeze flew by, pushing Fauna out of the way in the nick of time. She stood up, the spell finally wearing off.

"You got something up your sleeve, but fleeing won't help now! Arena trap!"

The ground around Fauna rose, and she was stuck or in others words, trapped by tall spikes. She couldn't jump over them. They parted as Nova came closer with her 'space matter' magic sphere. She watched it come towards her. Fauna jumped. Time slowed down. Everything seemed to freeze. Fauna felt odd. She heard something. Tiny voices.

_"Fauna, Fauna! You should know what to do! The secret was always inside of you! What did you fear most...and why?"_

She was no longer in the arena, but in a dark room. Light peeped in from a small crack.

_"Fauna, the darkness is creeping further into Hyrule. You must find the source and destroy it before it overwhelms Hyrule! The hero may already be on the job, but eventually the evil shall seep into your precious land and destroy. There will be pain and suffering...Losses. Memories of joy and happiness will be forgotten...if...you don't unlock the true power that was inside of you and prevent everything that is to come from these visions. The drought of Lake Lulu, and the destruction of Hyrule Castle. The kidnapping of Princess Zelda...the destruction of your village...the rise of Ganondorf and his dark sorceress..." _

Fauna was shocked by the information. The kidnapping of Princess Zelda? The rise of Ganondorf? A dark sorceress? Who, when, and why would this happen?

Before she could answer the questions, the world came flooding back. Nova's magic missed it's target. Fauna landed on the ground by the open door, but it shut.

"Trying to escape? That won't work! Starswirl!" Magic energy bolts began to circle Nova until they had become bright and powerful. They came in hordes. It was hard for Fauna to keep up. Eventually the arena trap spell wore off, and Fauna had more room to move in. She rolled out of the way only to get hit with another. Fauna bit her lip as the burn coursed through her body. It was nothing major, but it hurt...it stung.

"How's that taste? Bitter? I thought so. Now let's end this match. Dark power!" She jumped up, and was encased in a dark crystal.

_A dark sorceress..._

Fauna gasped. The crystal shattered, Nova was surrounded by red and black specks that hovered around her like dark energy. But it was the spell Dark Power. When was anyone allowed to learn that? Fauna crept backwards.

"You're already afraid. This isn't even my full power, only a mere speck."

Fauna expected her to babble on about when she would reach her peak and what she would do, but instead, a sly grin resided on her face.

"You give up Fawns?" She teased, walking around Fauna, "or should we end this...permanently."

Fauna's eyes widened. She wasn't going to...kill her! Fauna leapt up and began to run towards the edge.

"Forfeit?" Fauna stopped and whirled around.

"You're not going to take away my old friend!" Fauna yelled, she darted across the ground towards Nova. Nova smirked.

_So that's how it will end._

"Fauna!" A yell was heard from below. Fauna stopped a few feet away from Nova. The dark spell vanished. Nova clutched her head lightly.

"Fauna! There's no time for a battle, we have to go!" Kiara shouted. The battle was so intense, that Kiara had began to doubt that Fauna should be up there. Not only that, but Nova's power, and Fauna was magic less.

"Kiara? What do you mean?"

"There's only an hour until the festival starts!"

"Yeah Nova! Call it off! I have things to do, people to ask!" Ira began to trailed on about other stuff.

"Fine." Nova said. "Until next time Fauna, you know I'll win. Until next time..."

The platform landed back in the earth and the groups dispersed.

* * *

The girls had just finished their showers when Kiara glanced at the clock. She quickly dried herself off.

"We really have to hurry up and change into our dresses. Remember, we are to be at the Academy for roll call. They need to make sure they don't need any sudden replacements." Kiara said.

"Ki?"

"Yes?"

The vision Fauna had came flooding back. She stopped.

"I-it's nothing."

"Are you sure?"

"No..."

"What is it Fauna?"

"I'm sorry, Kiara, we should really hurry. Maybe later." Fauna said, waving as she left. Fauna was going to check on her parents real quick. Kiara dried off her hair and put a black ribbon in her hair. Was she the only one seeing things? She could have swore she saw Fauna encased in white energy, and Nova in dark matter. It was strange, like opposites clashing. But Nova...the strangest was her. She hadn't exactly heard the last spell she cast...but it was dark. Real dark.

_I have to find out what is up with that. Maybe I can sneak into her home an hour before the wishing ceremony, maybe I'll know what's going on...and where she learned those spells._

* * *

Chad walked to the academy slowly. He hadn't seen the others lately, but he wasn't worried. They were probably taking a last minute shower. Chad stopped. His hair was on edge, and his mind started feeling woozy. Things started to swirl about. He looked at the ground. Dark dust showed scorch marks and a battle. He felt dizzy. He fell down.

_W-what's going on?_

His muscles suddenly ached, and pain whirled through his body when he moved. Breathing was tough. Was he about to die? Or was this some sort of spell?

"Dark matter. It's dark matter, Chad."

Who was reading his mind?

He couldn't see who he was talking to, but he knew it was female. Before him stood sleek, shiny black boots with red designs.

"You can't fight it back even if you wanted too. It's inside of you, no matter how long you try to deny it and hide it. But there's a man. A man who can help you. Help you unleash it and use it wisely. To make you more powerful. What do you say?"

Chad groaned, trying to look up.

"You could get up if you would stop focusing on the little light energy left in you. You should know that you have dark energy inside of you."

"I...I don't know what you're talking about!" Chad managed to shout. A sharp pain in his throat made him growl.

"Yes you do. You probably have been noticing those markings. Haven't showed up in a while...have they? Nobody told you who you really are...haven't they? Or should I say...what you really are supposed to be..."

"Just leave me alone." He mumbled, taking shaky breaths in between.

"Alright Chad, I will. But you know, if you ever need help...come to us."

There was a whooshing sound, and he felt himself able to move again. He whirled around, but the figure was gone. Chad gasped for air and collapsed on the ground, the loss of air made his mind blur and the last thing he saw was dark specks hopping off the ground. Dark matter...dark energy...

* * *

Fauna finally found her parents preparing a large cake.

"Oh? Fauna? Aren't you supposed to be at the academy?"

"In a few moments, I just wanted to see how you were faring."

"We're fine dear, but you should really hurry back. I don't want you to be late."

"I know...alright, I will." Fauna gave each of them a hug and rushed back.

She decided to take a shortcut through the woods. She hopped over fallen logs and avoided scaring the wildlife by stepping on old leaves or twigs. She jumped over the small streams and dodged the branches that stuck out in the path. She was feeling refreshed with the forest air. When she emerged, she was back at their old training area. It was quiet, except for the birds. Fauna blinked. She could see mist swirling about in one spot, and when she blinked again, a woman covered in a pale green dress was there. Her brown eyes looked as if they were laughing in delight, and her blonde hair was braided into a side ponytail.

"So, you're the girl with my amulet? Ah..." She sighed contently. She sat on the old stump. "Poor tree, you didn't deserve this...it wasn't your fault that lightning struck you down...but to be taken away to be made into a chair...so sad."

"Y-you're Gaia?"

The woman laughed, "yes, my name is Gaia. And you are?"

"F-Fauna miss..."

"I can tell that you weren't expecting me."

"No...I was not. Gaia, would you tell me why I've been given strange visions?"

She laughed, "I wouldn't know, but I'm sure Hylia, or maybe Farore herself could explain. I don't have as much power as they do," her face turned serious, "but they aren't just visions, they are future images."

"Isn't that a vision?" Fauna asked, completely puzzled

Gaia laughed. "Of course! Most would think I was talking about two different things." She smiled. "Have you figured out what to do with my magic object yet?"

"No...I don't get it?"

"Have you ever thought about it? Just think...Stone of Gaia. What comes to your head?"

"Nature."

"Exactly. Gaia means 'earth'. Nature comes from the earth, or rather, this surface."

"What do you mean?"

Gaia looked about. "Dear, I really have to go. Someone's going to be here to see you, and aren't you supposed to be heading off to dance? Don't forget sweetie...nature!"

She smiled and vanished. Where she once stood, a blue flower was now. It shimmered.

_Something tells me that when I come back to talk to this flower, Gaia will come back. But she's right. I have to go. But who's going to visit?_

"Fauna! There you are!"

Fauna turned around to see Kiara rushing up to her.

"Oh, Ki, you didn't have to come get me."

"Why not? I couldn't find Chad. Come on, let's not be late." Kiara urged, grabbing her arm and tugging her down the hill, "we don't want to be late, now do we?"

"Of course not!" Fauna said, running after her.

_Maybe Gaia is right, _Fauna thought.

* * *

Chad woke up. The smell of the earth was strong. He opened his eyes. He was lying on the ground, but why? He stood up. His legs seemed stiff, like he had been lying there very long. He stretched. He did feel a bit odd, but nothing out of the usual. Until Chad felt a sharp pain in his right arm. He looked at his sleeve and rolled it up. A few red markings glowed. Chad covered it back up with his sleeve and took a sharp breath. He hadn't seen this thing since his parents disappeared. No...not since there was a dark night, and the yell...the yell of his mother in the dark night, and then there was silence.

He had been awakened that night because he had a horrible dream. He had gone downstairs after he heard whispers. The steps creak. There was a horrible scream. He darted down the stairs. His mother vanished. She wasn't in the chair sowing. Instead, there was a trail of string leading outside. When Zack came downstairs as well, the string had vanished. It was a horrible, dark night.

Chad shivered. He didn't like to think of that night. He probably should head to the academy as well to see if he wasn't late. Slowly, he made his way towards the stone building. Eventually, he made it to building and walked inside. He still heard some people in the room they were meeting, and he sighed. He wasn't late. Whatever it was, it wasn't long that he was out. Chad walked into the room.

"Ah, Chad!" Ira said smiling, "you made it, so where's the shadows?"

"The - oh, them, I don't know. And since when do you speak to me?"

"OH, we've always been speaking to each other." She winked, "say, since Kiara isn't here, I'll be her replacement."

Chad stiffened. "Whatever. I don't care."

Fauna and Kiara arrived a few minutes later, so in the end, Ira wasn't going to replace Kiara. After roll call, every did a practice run. This time it was good. Chad didn't drop Kiara, or throw her into some else. It wasn't like he was going to do that anyways.

"Perfect." Ziri said, sitting in one of the chairs. She smiled. "Looks like this dance will be even better than last time."

"Depends." Ire said, shrugging, "that is, if no one fails during the live dance. We aren't restarting because of that, we just have to continue."

"They know." Ziri said, rolling her eyes in annoyance.

Fauna and Kiara snickered.

"And what, may I ask, are you two laughing at?" Ziri snapped.

Fauna covered her mouth and Kiara coughed.

"I'm sorry, it was just -" Kiara looked at Fauna and burst out into laughter. She never finished that sentence.

"Anyways, stop laughing, it's nothing but distracting. Alright everyone, grab your dress attire, it's time to change."

* * *

**This was probably the longest chapter I ever wrote, it's over 3,000 words. If you like that long, say so, I'll try to think of something. And yes, Ira likes Chad. Maybe I should add some 'fun facts' after each chapter. I'll try it know.  
**

**Fun Facts**

_Gaia does mean earth.  
_

_Someone was reading Chad's thoughts._

_Something is happening with Nova._

_Fauna's visions aren't jokes._

_Gaia will appear every now and then._

_Ire was teasing Ziri._

_Fauna and Kiara were laughing at Ire and Ziri._

_Yes, Arena Trap is originally a Pokemon ability._

**Anyways, I'll try to add more later. Don't forget to visit my page on progress of my story and other things. Yes, I need you all to vote on a poll on my page, please. Thanks for reading and don't forget to leave a review!  
**

* * *

**_Edit:_**

_And for those who were confused, when I wrote Ire, I meant the teacher Ire, not Ira, don't worry, I'll make sure you can easily tell who. Anyways, Ire is usually talking to Ziri and Ira is complaining about things._

**I went back and corrected the errors!**

* * *

**See you in Hyrule!**

**Yours truly,**

_**AuthorPen11**_


	15. Opposites Attract?

**Hi everyone! I'm back again. I made sure that everything was in perfect order before continuing. Ah, yes, I've edited my previous chapter which was riddled with errors, and after the 'Fun Facts' I realized I forgot about leaving information about my previous characters. But then again, I stopped that because I didn't have much I could give without spoilers, and then it would ruin my train of thought (choo choo!). Well anyways, I want to get right on to answering those reviews. But first...a shoutout!  
**

_**Thank you Fangirl946 for adding this story to your favorite zone! I hope you can review!**_

**Legendoffun (SpellCheck Warrior) -** _Yes I know, it was riddled with errors, but don't worry, I fixed them all. And yes, I meant Ire not Ira. I know, it's been like chapter 6 since I last mentioned him - 9 chapters ago not including Ch. 14 - but I just needed to add another character, but not make one. Sorry if I confused you. Six months without updating?! You're making me horrified, thinking of when I finish this story...but there could be a sequel to this, so I don't know...anyways, thanks for catching those mistakes, can't wait to see what you fish up this chapter!_

**Libby8980 (The Friendly Reviewer) -** _Yeah, Mia is scary, creepy, weird...oh yes, I know I added a pokemon reference in the previous chapter :P I can't wait to see your review this chapter! Anyways Friendly Reviewer, thanks for your kind and loving comments!_

**And now...we are back to AP11 Channel. Oh, and spoiler...title reference...**

* * *

**Chapter 15**

Everyone was indeed excited as the hours ticked away before the festival could start. Kiara, was stretching her legs and thinking deeply about tonight. Indeed, wishing alone didn't sound that bad, but perhaps...perhaps Chad wouldn't mind. Kiara rolled her eyes. Of course he would mind. He did say he wanted to be wishing alone by himself anyways. Maybe Fauna wouldn't be busy, but you never know, she was probably busy finding her.

And Kiara was right.

"Kiara!" Fauna yelled, "would you please tell me why you keep running off! We have to change, the dance is in five minutes, and then we have to change again for the _ceremony _you know, the official ceremony where they declare us warriors of the Sheikah Tribe!"

"I know Fauna, but I didn't want to change just yet, I wanted to get a whiff of fresh air before I have to change into a dress and try not to fall in sandals as I dance the night away...I can imagine my sore feet."

"Kiara, you wouldn't have sore feet! Training has done plenty of work that would avoid sore feet!" Fauna explained, "sometimes, I think you are just trying to avoid dancing with Chad."

"What? No!" Kiara said, her cheeks turning red. "And why would I do that?"

"'Cause you're afraid you'll blurt out something stupid."

"Am not."

"I'm not going to argue with you, but it's pretty obvious, Kiara." Fauna gave a sly smile and glared at Kiara, who shrunk instead.

"Alright. Fine, you win." She replied, "but it had nothing to do with blurting out stupid requests, you should be the one to know that."

"Well alright, let's hurry up, we've wasted a good three minutes here." Fauna complained, hurrying over to the building where the rest of the group waited.

* * *

Chad straightened out his hair and brushed it aside. He was fine with himself, the outfit wasn't that bad, but it wasn't something he would wear daily. It was a little, itchy. He turned away from the mirror and walked out of the back room. The next person to head inside was Felix. Honestly, Chad hadn't spoke to him since the teams were made. Even though Raven wasn't in the same group as Nova and Ira (who were paired with Felix), Felix chose to stay away from them for hours, and Raven would eventually end up talking with Nova. You would think they were on the same group, but apparently, they were just good friends. That reminded him. It had been weeks since the team was made. Two months actually. A lot had happened.

Chad was taken out from his thoughts when the doors swung open. Chad jumped out of the way, avoiding Kiara in the nick of time. He could have swore that this was the same floor Kiara and him fell on in his dream. At least he avoided it...maybe.

The girls rushed by quickly, it was obvious that they did not see him, and were in a hurry. He didn't want to slow them down anyway. He sat down on one of the stools and waited for everyone to finish up.

_Five minutes later_...

The girls had finished changing, and Ziri came in. She was wearing something different besides the training uniform she usually wore. She walked up and down, examining each person to make sure everything was right.

"Alright everyone, we have a minute to spare before the crowds will be packed. You should know that there won't be any bathroom breaks during the three dances, and I expect no talking now. All of this is important," she scowled at Ira, "So please, let's do this right, I've used up enough hours of my day teaching you all."

At that moment, Ziri glanced at the clock, "alright, time's up. Let's go."

* * *

Thankfully, the other dances were short ones. The ceremony had just started, and they were calling up the new Sheikah Warriors.

"Nova, Ira, Felix, Yuki, Raven, Chad, Fauna, Kari, and Kiara." Ire called, smiling as each one of them stepped up on the platform. Kiara had managed to change a few moments after the dance. As they all stood in line, Ziri walked by each of them. She smiled at everyone of them.

"These, are the graduates of the second level sheikah training." She declared, smiling with pride, "and I - we, trained every one of them." She gave a short glance towards Ire, who stopped at that moment. He gave her a grin, which she ignored. Fauna mumbled something under her breath.

A large round of applause followed, and there were several cheers from the proud parents in the crowd. They scurried off the stage and into the swirling crowd, being bombarded with 'congratulations' and 'well dones'. Kiara whipped through the crowd until she was in the arms of her Aunt.

"Thank you.." She sniffed, a tear running down her cheek, "I've finally done it."

"Yes, you did." She replied, there were no tears in her eyes, but you could see her eyes sparkle, "yes...and now you're ready."

_Ready? Ready for what?_

Aunt Mila let her go. "Why don't you enjoy the food, I have a few friends I need to chat too."

Kiara was grateful for the alone time. She hurried over to Fauna who had just wiggled out of a long embrace from her parents.

"Kiara!"

"Hey Fauna, have you seen -"

"Uh...Kiara?"

She whirled around. Chad was with his brother, who was snickering. Kiara saw a swift kick silence Zack, who soon left.

"I was wondering...whether or not you wanted to...y'know. Wish as a group?" He motioned towards Fauna. Fauna brightened.

"Sounds nice, but I thought a 'loner has to be alone'?"

"Did I say I was a loner?" He questioned innocently.

Fauna laughed. "Forget about it, that was the past. Let's get some food and find _our _spot."

They hurried off to the crowd where people were picking up large plates and filling them up. They squeezed in and managed to get some good food and a few slices of cake and cookies, before hurrying to the edge of town. It was still busy, nonetheless, but they made sure they were away from a lot of people as they ascended a grassy hill. They sat down and began to eat. The sun descended and the darkness began to gather. The stars started to appear. One by one, they twinkled in the darkness, shining brightly. Fauna dropped her empty plate. A shooting star whisked by.

"Alright, start wishing!" Fauna whispered.

Kiara squeezed her eyes shut.

_I wish...that there would be brighter days, and something to bring us...me, Chad and Fauna, together as best friends._

Chad closed his eyes.

_Getting over my fears would be nice...I guess, but maybe, just maybe something that will help me remember those markings...my past._

Fauna's eyes slowly shut and she took in a sharp breath.

_To regain my magic, and understand Gaia's words of wisdom._

They all opened their eyes, and a large comet flashed across the dark sky. Fauna smiled. The starts brightened before slowly turning dim. The stars had appeared. Fauna's eyes twinkled in excitement. A warm breeze whipped around them and Fauna smiled. They picked up their plates and trotted down the hill. The town was still a buzz and everyone cheered and danced. Fauna stopped. She felt something strange. It was like a storm's breeze in the middle of a sunny day. She shook it off, figuring that she was just overreacting. She followed Chad and Kiara into the crowd to refill their plates with the delicious food set out for them.

"Wow, what a great, hectic, day." Kiara mouthed, walking along side the others. It was a hectic day, but it was one she would never forget. No, she wouldn't. Chad walked ahead of them but Fauna grabbed Kiara, stopping her from continuing.

"Kiara...look!" She squealed excitedly, she pointed to a small group of people dancing.

"Uh huh, what's - oh..." Kiara stopped. No way she would see that another day. Ziri and Ire were on one of the hills chatting happily. Ire, had his original grin on, but Ziri was smiling, for once. Ire spotted them and waved. By instinct, Fauna and Kiara dived onto the ground, avoiding Ziri's gaze. No use being caught spying on those two tonight. Ziri could yell at them another day.

"They make a cute couple." Fauna whispered, crawling after Chad. Kiara snickered, following Fauna's lead. Chad had just realized their sudden appearance after taking a couple good cake and pie slices.

"You're really missing out - unless you spotted Ire and Ziri at the same spot." He said, smiling at their surprised face.

"You saw that?"

"Of course I did, that's why I rushed off. I wouldn't be caught dead spying on them. Unless I wanted to be dead." He smirked. Fauna and Kiara exchanged glances.

"Yeah, I can see that." Kiara replied.

* * *

The next morning went by quickly. The loud noise from the celebrating crowd woke Kiara out, forcing her to get up. She couldn't go to sleep with those loud shouts of excitement going on outside their home. Aunt Mila was already outside, probably shopping. Kiara left the home and walked out into the sunlight. It felt good, the bright rays of the sun on her skin. She walked to the town square to see if she could find Fauna or Chad. She didn't see either of them until the late afternoon. Fauna told Kiara that she was busy cleaning up the house, and Chad said something about training. Kiara shrugged. It didn't matter, but the parties that were here and there really made her wonder if she would ever forget about the loud, noisy people who lived in the town. There was random whoops and yells that startled her.

Aunt Mila had waved at Kiara from the cake stand, where she was collecting some of her dishes. Kiara smiled at the thought. Maybe her vision wouldn't happen after all.

"Kiara, what do you say about checking out the sights quickly? Maybe we can view the town from the training spot. Maybe we might find Ire, or Ziri."

"Or both."

They snickered, and Chad just coughed.

"Ahem, I don't think that will be necessary."

The girls turned around to a glowering Ziri.

"I saw you two..."

Fauna and Kiara ran off, and Chad turned away and hurriedly avoided the raging Ziri as she rushed after them. He wasn't taking any part in this fiasco. Eventually though, Ziri gave up and stopped chasing them. They regrouped and hurried off to the familiar sights. It was wonderful. The waterfall was as beautiful as ever. Well, not for Kiara. She almost got killed because of it. But then it did kind of save her. When they went to the cliff-side, there was no one at the old house. Everything was gone besides the shattered window.

"I wonder how that happened." Chad said, as the walked through it. Kiara gulped. She wasn't going to say anything about this until later. Much later.

They walked through the forest and from a distance, viewed the mountain they had to climb up in the test. They walked past the training area and by the area Fauna and Nova fought at. Here, they found Nova, overlooking the town.

"Oh, hi Nova. Didn't know I'd see you here."

She didn't reply. Fauna and Kiara looked at each other as Chad walked over to her. He tapped her lightly on the shoulder.

"Nova?"

She stood up and spun around.

"What do you - huh, oh...hi."

"You're a little jumpy, what's up?"

"It's just..." she looked over his shoulder and saw Kiara and Fauna.

"I see you brought your crew along." She continued bitterly.

"Is there a problem?" Kiara asked.

"Yes, you." Nova replied.

"Oh alright, I wanted to speak to Kiara by myself anyways." Fauna replied, grabbing Kiara by the arm and storming off.

Chad sat down next to Nova.

"Is something wrong?"

"It's just...Chad. I'm really sorry. But I have to leave the village. I can't stay anyways. I promised someone that I would...that I would follow, but they want you to come to, but I didn't want to alarm you, so I told them that you said you wouldn't come."

"That's whats wrong? Who is this, and why are you choosing to leave your home?"

"I can't tell you. He told me...I couldn't tell you who he is unless you wanted something bad to happen to the village. And that I most obey his every command. I'm sorry Chad, but I'll have to leave."

"Tell me again why?"

"Because opposites attract." She gave a faint smile before looking away, "don't worry. I have a feeling that I'll see you soon. Bye...Chad." She rushed down the hill and Chad stood their frozen in his spot.

_Why? Who? What was going on? She was leaving?_

As soon as Nova was gone, Fauna and Kiara came back.

"Chad, are you alright? Where's Nova?"

"I-I'm fine..."

"Is something wrong?"

Chad looked away. Why again did she say _because opposites attract_? Wasn't that a good thing? But he wondered...where was Nova going. No, he wouldn't let this strange man take away Nova, she was his friend, and there was nothing that guy was going to do about it.

* * *

**Took forever to write with so many interruptions! And not only that, writer's block started to kick in. I also had a idea for a story that is kind of related to this, but instead, uses one character that isn't really talked about. Don't worry, it isn't a OC this time. Besides that, I have a few fun facts. **

**Fun Facts**

_I used multiple references in this chapter.  
_

_Ire and Ziri make a cute couple._

_You will see Nova later._

_Nova did say 'opposites attract' but she was going to say the truth, but Fauna and Kiara were eavesdropping and she knew it._

_'Cause loners have to be alone' is from that strange Geico commercial._

_Fauna did just say the title in the beginning._

_Ziri did chase after the two girls...for a bit._

_The journey will begin in about three chapters, starting with the main problem and issue._

_I did in fact, think that writing this reminded me of CinemaSins_ (Youtube Channel).

**Anyways, thanks for reading, leave a review, S.C.W. (SpellCheck Warrior!) will take care of the errors. Favorites and follows are appreciated, but new reviewers earn cookies. Besides, can anyone guess who that Canon character will be? The story will be Post-Twilight Princess ;)**

* * *

**Edit: 3/5/15: I know right...what is wrong with me... 11 errors to go with AP11! I've been slacking so bad, I'm going to find a dictionary. Seriously, I've made so many errors, I started flipping out, but I'm glad to see Irene T447 back. I figured you were busy, and I'm glad you reviewed to every chapter so far, I'll make sure to reply to them all in the lucky chapter 16.**

* * *

**Anyways, see you all later,**

**Yours truly,**

_**AuthorPen11**_


	16. New Spells

**Alright, I'll admit, there should be something more interesting then a festival (riddled with errors), but the day isn't over. The celebration is for the weekend, and only a day has passed. But before I continue, I have reviews...reviews...and more reviews...  
**

**Libby8980 (The Friendly Reviewer!) -** _Sorry if you can't see the references ( ' - ' ) I tried... I'm glad you were able to review to this chapter because it's awesome to see your reviews :) I don't know if 'humbly' is supposed to be spelled 'hu!bly'...but it doesn't matter, I can still read it (^.^)_

**Irene T447 (Ally in Fiction!) -** _Yes! You're back! Oh, I figured you hadn't been able to get on lately... so I waited, I was hoping you would come back :) I'm glad you like how the story is going, that means my plot is more organized here that it is in my head._

Well, I can see that, everyone has a different view about Fauna, and the 'kiddos' are going to be well...pretty horrified to see the adults faces if they say "well, I've had these dreams for weeks now, but I figured it wouldn't happen", let's just say...**someone will be dead**.

_Well, maybe Fauna will tell her mom about what's going on, or maybe she's afraid of what might happen...but I doubt it (I'm doubting myself?) because she told the truth - sort of - during their dangerous escapade. Yeah, and again, Fauna loves magic much more than training, but she decided that the warrior training would come in handy against 'magic-proof' enemies. As for Gaia's appearance, some of them have many visions about things like that, and let's just say a good half of them think they were just delusional.  
__Yes, I had been leading up to something disastrous, but the festival isn't over so...we'll see what will happen in this chapter and the next :) _

**Legendoffun (SpellCheck Warrior) -** _When I read this review I could have *let's say promised* that I threw my pencil across the floor and ripped out a page of my creative stories (don't worry, I meant to do that), I'm not mad - at you, but yes, I'm mad at me - doesn't make sense I know... - so I've decided to try my best and read over it twice before sending it out. Besides, I'm usually up at seven the next morning procrastinating before I send it in - I feel so horrible... But thanks for catching it, after all, you are the 'SpellCheck Warrior'._

**Oh yes, I'll start. OH, and don't try practicing those spells at home, there's a 100% chance that it won't work...  
**

* * *

**Chapter 16  
**

The morning sun glared down at the village as the inhabitants continued on with the celebration. Fauna, at this time, was out in the fields enjoying the morning breeze, which tossed her hair carelessly about.

'_Ahh, just what I need, a good breeze and bright light to kick off a new day, maybe I'll figure out how to use these strange abilities. Gaia had given a idea of how to use them..._' Fauna thought to herself.

She was sitting down, cross-legged and also examining her surroundings. '_Well, she did say "Gaia means earth" so it has to have something to do with the land...maybe it's different with each climate...or maybe it's something else. I'm not quite sure how any of this will work. But perhaps a library in Hyrule will have some information. Besides, I am old enough to leave, I'll just ask, they don't really know that I can't use magic...but I can still use my skills from training. Of course that will come in handy.'_

Fauna stopped her train of thought and began to pull a few pieces of grass out of the ground, twisting them together. It was sweet-smelling grass, that had a peculiar flavor. It smelled wonderful, but tasted bitter. Fauna remembered that this grass, which was called 'Faint Melody', helped with bruises and swelling. She pulled out of her satchel, a leather book which had scribbled on the front 'plant journal'. Inside, she recorded everything poisonous and helpful, where they could be located, and what they smelled and tasted like. Since she also planned on becoming a healer, she needed to know which natural plant could help with what. She pulled out a piece of thin coal, scribbled in her book, drawing on the small map she had copied where Faint Melody could be located in the land of 'Sheia'. That's what she liked to call their homeland. Since it was mainly inhabited by small Sheikah tribes, she figured that it would be easier, and nicer to say than 'Outer Hyrule'. After a quick edit in her book, she placed the writing utensil away and put away her plant diary.  
She picked up her spell book and looked through the spells connected to the elements.

'_Hmm, earth spells. "This spell transformed small patches of grass into thorns". Best used when surrounded. Minds as well as give it a shot._' Fauna thought, standing up and quickly looking through the words once more.

"Alright, let's try this. _Orphinis Salfornon me-talphim_."

'_I hope I got that right..._'

Fauna glanced at the words once more and then looked up again. She tumbled backwards when she saw the tall, sickly thorns in front of her. So the spell _had _worked. That meant that she could still use magic. She looked at the counter-spell.

"_Merfindes malinsod tormin-di kilopani_?" It disappeared as the last syllable fluttered away.

'_Hmm, so the spells still work...maybe I should go visit Gaia if she's still there. I hope I wasn't imagining anything. I still can't believe it though._' Fauna trailed, picking up her things and putting them away. She turned away and walked towards the forest where she believed she first met Gaia. Sure enough, the flower remained in the soil, shimmering as she entered the small clearing. She sat down and tapped the flower gently.

"Gaia, if I really did meet you, I have good news. I figured out how to use my magic again, but I still can't access any of the stone's magical properties. I was hoping you could teach me a thing or two, but seeing that I was in a hurry last time, I think it would be best to try now."

The plant moved lightly, and a swift breeze whipped through the concealed area. In a matter of seconds, Gaia was back.

"Still doubting that we met?" She laughed, "of course we did, and I'd be glad to teach you a few things. So Fauna, what would you like to learn?"

Fauna stood there for a minute, absorbing everything in. A simple "oh" escaped her mouth and she stood up. Gaia smiled gently.

"Well, I did figure out how to use regular magic, but I wanted to know how to use some of the earth spells that the books in the library suggested that the stone could, or might, be able to do. Do you think I could try the first one?"

"You mean the butterfly wings? Or did you mean the earth manipulation spells?"

"Which one is easier?"

Gaia pondered for a moment. "If I recall correctly, the last person I taught learned both of them easily, so I might not be correct. But I'd say the butterfly wings, since manipulating the elements - or people, is much harder than it seems. At first it seem easy, but at the end, your energy will be drained, leaving you vulnerable. So, let's start with the wings, shall we?"

Fauna stood there and watched Gaia close her eyes. She spread out her arms, she started to glow. Suddenly, the wings spread out and glimmered. Specks of green, red, blue and silver where imprinted all over the wings. Gaia opened her eyes, and after a moment, they disappeared.

"Of course, I don't use those to fly, I use the manipulation spells, but why don't you give it a try?"

Fauna closed her eyes and tried to focus as much as she could, trying to imagine the butterfly wings on her back, helping her hover just above the ground. She opened her eyes, but found that she hadn't moved at all. . She tried several times, but failed. She was beginning to get frustrated. Gaia was partly amused. Fauna saw her snicker lightly.

"It's not my fault those wings won't appear, I've tried, maybe I've already used enough energy for the day." Fauna pouted. Gaia gave a skeptical look.

"I think you just want to give up. But let me tell you Fauna, it may take you a moment to get used to it, but you have to imagine a butterfly."

"It's that simple to explain, yet so hard to accomplish."

"Sounds like a great quote." Gaia remarked, settling on a fallen log. She winced lightly, even though Fauna didn't notice at all.

She had already closed her eyes and was focusing as much as she could on her 'future' wings. Even though Fauna didn't see it, her hands glowed a pale green, and she slowly levitated off the ground. Gaia opened her mouth to say something, but stopped as she saw Fauna's wings slowly appear. She didn't want to interrupt her concentration. At first, they looked like transparent butterfly wings, but they soon curled their edges, and the tips showed hints of pink, brown and green. Slowly, blue and red spots appeared all over the wings.

"Well done!" Gaia exclaimed, jumping up. Fauna opened her eyes and looked at the wings that moved gently in the breeze. Her mouth dropped open.

"It worked! It worked!" She flew up into the air excitedly. She examined the town from where she was. She felt the wings slowly disappear. She slowly dropped from the sky. Fauna closed her eyes. She felt herself hit something soft. She opened one eye, and slowly the other. She realized she fell on a tall pile of soft, springy ground. She stood up and noticed that it disappeared slowly.

"D-did I do that?"

"Of course not, that was a climate changing spell, and manipulation spell. That would take a lot of energy for you." Gaia explained.

"That was a bit like a summoning spell."

"Oh...so you can like...summon things?"

"Yes, but it will take you a while to learn how to do that. So, want to try a earth manipulation spell?"

"Sure."

* * *

Chad walked through the town hall, looking around for Nova. He hadn't seen her since yesterday. What she said worried him.

'_She didn't leave last night, the night watch would have (or at least should have) stopped her. Besides, no strange person can just take her from her home._' He guessed, walking through the narrow pathways until he was at the edge of town. He saw two pairs of footprints before him, and a few steps later, they disappeared. They were fresh. He stepped forward, and a overwhelming scent of burnt stuff whooshed up his nose. He coughed.

'_Transportation spell, no doubt._' He knelt down to the floor and stared. The boots were larger than Nova's small footprints. Obviously, there was a burly man or thing he might have to deal with. He searched his bag and made sure he had some heart potions before stepping forward. Despite the surprises he had a few days ago, he had examined the markings he had on his arms and believed they had something to do with a magical tribe. His eyes quickly shut, and he imagined that he was following Nova. His hair began to move with the breeze before he vanished altogether.

He could see footprints...shoes...side by side, two cloaked figures exited the neighboring town. The taller one stopped, and the other also paused. Chad felt something grip him tightly and he started to gasp for air. They turned around, and suddenly, Chad was on the ground, his eyes wide open. So that's where she was...and if he didn't hurry, she would be on the other side of the border. He examined the markings on his arms and noticed they had gone from black to red, but soon faded after the vision ended. He stood up and dusted himself off. He watched the few guards change shifts before taking off. He wanted to know why Nova really had to leave, who was taking her, and if it was against her will. He wouldn't have someone take his friend by force.

As he continued sprinting, he felt his legs run faster, and before he knew it, he had to stop to avoid running straight into a house. But he didn't slow down fast enough, and before he knew it, the houses were right in front of him. Using his momentum, he bounded onto the roof and continued in this fashion until he was past the town square and on the other side of village. He tumbled off the last house but managed to make a sound landing, his arms outstretched beside him, stopping him from tumbling headfirst into the ground. His flexible abilities pleased him. He peered up and spotted the same two cloaked figures continuing.

"Wait!" He shouted, running up to them.  
They stopped and turned. The tallest figure was hidden inside of the cloak it wore. Out peered two purple eyes and a sharp, pointy tooth appeared. The other, slim figure turned. The smaller one took off the hood and there stood Nova. Her hair was up in a ponytail, and her eyes showed shock, worry, and surprise. The other person, or thing, put a hand on Nova's shoulder, but she glared back at it. Its hand retreated, and Nova took a few steps forward.

"Chad, I'm sorry, but I can't have you follow. It puts you in more danger than you think."

"I'm not letting you walk off with some stranger. Who is this person? Are they forcing you? Why do you have to leave?"

"I told you Chad," she sighed, "you're so stubborn, but I've told you already that I can't tell you anything without bringing harm to you and everyone else. You have to let me go." Usually, when she mentioned how stubborn he was, she would smile, but her faced remained emotionless except for the tear that was about to fall.

"Will I ever see you?"

She looked down before focusing her eyes back on him, "no. I don't think I'll ever see you again. This is good-bye."

* * *

**Anyone notice that I didn't mention Kiara? The thing was, I wanted to expand everyone else's point of views, since I had mainly been using Kiara's point of view for the past few chapters...so I thought maybe it would be time for a change, and besides, I hadn't exactly planned for anything of interest for her part. So let's see...do we have any fun facts? If Kiara appears...I'm sorry "'(^.^)  
**

**Fun Facts**

_Kiara wasn't mentioned..._

'Hold on, how is that fun?!'

_Fauna did learn a few spells, and will learn more later on._

_Chad will go after Nova._

'Isn't that spoilers? Oh well...'

_Chapters should get longer in time._

_Gaia will appear more._

_We will find out who Gaia had taught before Fauna._

_Fauna has more power than she thinks._

_Chad did use dark magic._

'Don't ask...wait, do ask, I'll tell Chad you asked."

_The spells in this chapter will not affect anyone, or anything, unless you are saying that out loud, and you might get strange stares. Oh, and I can't help you if that happens._

_Go ahead and quote Fauna - quote "it's that simple to explain, yet so hard to accomplish"._

_Call their homeland 'Sheia' if you want._

_Another thing about the spell, I wanted to put it in the hylian alphabet, but then again, I didn't want to have to decipher it for everyone._

**Fun facts are over, and I'm glad that there are people still reading this story. Please review, I love to see what you have to say.  
**

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**But everything is not as it seems in the world of Hyrule...darkness is growing, and will soon reach the land they love...**

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**Can't wait to see you in the next chapter! ****So until then, I hope to see you again, and it was a pleasure writing this for you all!**

**Yours truly,**

_**AuthorPen11**_


	17. Attack on the Village

**Hi everyone, I'm glad to see that you are still here. I'm so close to 40 reviews! This would be a record for me, since I've never gotten this much. I can't imagine reaching 100... if you haven't reviewed already to the chapters before, it'd be nice if you went back and typed it up quickly or something, but there's no need. As long as there are reviews, I'll be glad to write on.  
**

**Legendoffun -** _Yeah, don't worry about yourself that much 'SpellCheck', I made the corrections as soon as I saw your review. Yeah, if it was like that for a Legend of Zelda game...I'd be like "when did they think of this, seems a bit to familiar to my fan fiction story...can't complain though..." and I'm sure Kiara will find out in a matter of moments._

**Libby8980 -** _Oh that's good. I didn't want to make anyone mad for leaving our Kiara, so I'm glad you accepted it nicely. Thanks for the friendly review. I hope to see your review in this chapter :)  
_

**News: **_I've decided since this chapter marks the beginning of their journey, I would like to make it longer. That means, starting April 2nd, every two weeks one Thursday - (that means no chapters every Thursday) - I will send out a chapter that should be at least 5,000 words longer excluding the author note, answering the reviews, and the fun facts. I feel that it would be nicer to see some long chapters, and I don't plan on writing fillers. If I don't think I'll be able to send out the chapter, it might arrive on Saturday or on Friday. It's a really hard decision, but I like reading long chapters, don't you?_

**So, I guess since I'm done with the reviews and info, I minds as well as begin.**

* * *

**Chapter 17  
**

Fauna was walking home as the sun began to set. No one was home, so she figured she would just see if she found anything to spare in her home. Fauna's nose twitched when the smell of smoke reached her. She coughed. The fireplace hadn't been tended, and she couldn't think of the candles causing something to burn unless someone tipped it over. She picked up a candle and opened the door to the storage area. Smoke immediately billowed out and she started coughing vigorously. She slammed the door shut again and hurried off to get a cold bucket. She must somehow get help, but she couldn't figure out what. She hadn't learned any water spells. But she must do something quick. Panic spread over Fauna's face. It would take to long to try to get help from Gaia, and if she ran off now, by the time the villagers came back, the whole storage room would be on fire. She coughed again; the smoke was coming through quicker now. Fauna soaked a wet cloth and pushed it to the open crack underneath the door, trying to stop the smoke from entering. She had to get help.

She pushed the door open outside and turned in the direction of the town. Her mouth fell open, and her eyes were filled with horror and dread. Flames had started to lick the nearby forest where she met Gaia. And the town was on fire. Fauna's legs stood there, glued to the dirt road.

No, no, no! This isn't happening...Gaia! The flower! The woodland creatures!

Fauna lurched forward and dashed to the forest. She must save that flower, or maybe she wouldn't be able to speak to Gaia again...no, that couldn't happen, she would have to rescue the flower before the fire began to scorch the precious plant. Her legs continued to run up the grassy slope until she reached the entrance of the forest. Without a single thought, she was running into the smoky forest, and she felt the temperature steadily rise as she hurried into the heart of the forest.

* * *

Panic was in everyone's faces when they noticed the town hall was on fire. Kiara's face went pale. Where was Fauna, Chad or Aunt Mila? She looked around, but was shoved out of the way by the fleeing crowds. She stumbled onto the dirt and groaned. She better find Ziri quick, if she could, or Ire, or someone. She searched about frantically and darted off towards the academy. She hoped she would find someone, anyone there to help her. She kicked the door down without a second thought to the damage she just had done. She pushed the doors open to the nearest room and found Ire in the middle of a story, talking to the little students. Ziri was in a corner watching the students, but bolted upright when the doors swung open.

Ziri read her face and sent a look of warning towards Ire. "Ire, your going to have to stop. Fire isn't it...it's already begun... Kiara, watch the students and lead them to somewhere outside of the village...no, the neighboring town, and we'll try to make some order and put out those flames. Come on Ire."

Ire jumped up, and before Kiara knew what had happened, they were gone. A group of seven year olds sat there, their eyes glued on Kiara.

"A-aren't you the girl who graduated?" One asked.

"Uh, yeah, but I have to get you all out of here, hold hands and follow me...calmly. If there's anything in here that's yours, take it now...er, hurry. We have to get to the neighboring town."

"Why? I want to see my mom."

"Look kid, I'm in charge, and there's a good chance that your mom won't be able to pick you all up. Now hurry!"

The kids quickly grabbed their packs and followed her out of the room. Kiara gripped her dagger and lead the kids out of the building. A few minutes after she left, she saw a few flames start to lick the building eagerly. Kiara gasped, because in front of her was the same group she ran into a couple of days ago. It was only the girl...what was her name again? Right...Hetia. She was the girl who attacked her at the cliff-side building. Apparently, they were leading the attack. Kiara froze for a few seconds. She couldn't let Hetia hurt the children.

"Run! Neighboring village!" She whispered in the ears of the tallest child. They nodded, running off. Hetia's eyes trailed after them for a few moments before locking onto Kiara once more.

"So...we meet again. I knew you weren't dead."

"Y-you? Are you starting these fires? Why?"

"I'd be a fool to tell you anything, so let's just get this over with." She jumped into the air and launched a swift kick to Kiara's right. Kiara back flipped and avoided the attack, pulling out her dagger and glaring ferociously.

"I should have known it was you all along."

Hetia kept silent and swiftly aimed her attacks at Kiara's feet, trying to tip her off balance, but Kiara knew what she was thinking. She jumped over Hetia and turned around.

"Not this time, Hylia's Sphere!" Kiara's hands glowed a faint blue, and an orb flew into Hetia. She blocked it with a dark energy while mumbling something to herself.

"Not bad, but you aren't good enough for me." Her blade shimmered red, and she dashed towards Kiara, swinging the dagger right at her. Kiara countered it with her dagger and a spark flew into the air. It landed into the rough dirt and disappeared. They continued on like this, trying to overpower the other. Kiara felt a few drops of sweat form on her forehead as Hetia leaned over her, pressing the dagger against her blade, the only thing that prevented her from getting killed. The strain on her wrist started to kick in, and she gritted her teeth. It was becoming painful, and Kiara's legs began to sway, trying to keep her from collapsing on the ground. Hetia jumped away and Kiara fell backwards. Hetia charged at her and leapt into the air, bringing her sword down upon Kiara, who rolled out of the way moments earlier. Hetia left her blade in the earth and pulled out a needle from her side pocket. It reflected the sunlight and dazzled Kiara briefly, and when she blinked, Hetia was gone.

Hastily, Kiara searched her surroundings to find Hetia, and slowly backed away from her previous spot. Sitting there would do no good. Kiara's ears twitched, and her body suddenly dashed headfirst to the ground. Kiara didn't know what she was doing, but when she sat up, she saw the same glimmering needle pinned in the dirt where she had been. She rolled out of the way, hearing more whiz by. She jumped up again, avoiding a sweep kick from Hetia, who slipped in when Kiara was distracted. She growled menacingly.

"If you'd hold still, this would be painful and quick." She whispered harshly, her eyes kindled by a flame of annoyance and hatred. She tossed three more at Kiara, who rolled out of the way and did a cartwheel to avoid the last. Kiara paused. Suddenly, she realized what Hetia was trying to do.

Tire me out, and then she would attack, that's why she stopped the close combat. But maybe if I bring it up again, she'll be caught off guard.

Kiara leapt at Hetia, only for her to roll out of the way. She already established what Kiara had attempted, and scowled. She lunged at Kiara, and pulled out her sword, slashing downwards at Kiara. At that moment, she was pushed aside by a dark wave and landed on her side. Hetia rolled a few feet away. She just got the wind knocked out of her, but Kiara was to tired to get up and end the battle. A shadow passed over Kiara and she froze.

She turned her head.

"C-Chad?"

* * *

Chad stood there and fixed his eyes on Nova.

"No, you're not going to leave, your home, friends, family."

Nova looked down. "I told you Chad, I'm not going back. I don't have a family to go back to anymore..."

Chad looked over his shoulder and stopped. Smoke. Smoke was rising beyond the neighboring village. His village was on fire...but how? Fear seized Chad, and without a second thought, he was running off towards home.

"Chad...I'm sorry." Nova's voice trailed, and then she turned around and began to walk off towards the border. He hadn't heard her, because he was running headlong back to the village. The moment he left, a fire started. Wow, they really couldn't take care of anything...

As he sprinted across the ground, he realized that there was something going on. A small group of children rushed by him without a word, but fear and panic was on their faces. That was the group Ziri and Ire had been teaching earlier that morning, but where was Ziri and Ire? As he covered the last slope within a matter of strides, he stopped. Not far away, Kiara and some woman were battling fiercely. Kiara was in a tight spot, and didn't look like she could handle much more. He turned his eyes to the left and saw the smoke and fire savagely scorching his home village, and was already leaping from house to house. He saw dark figures over the last one, dropping something on the roof. They disappeared with the blink of an eye, and a small flame leapt up the village home, and began from the other side of town. Chad swallowed and turned. He didn't see much he could do either way, but he knew he'd be better off with help...and so would Kiara.

Just as the woman came dropping down upon Kiara, Chad closed his eyes. All around him grew red, and his hair began to stand up, flowing with an unknown breeze. He held his right hand outward, and a dark wave of magic pushed the woman away. She fell on the ground, obviously not expecting the attack. He slowly walked towards Kiara, his shadow looming over her. The magic effect left him, but his marking remained a deep red. He let his hands drop to his side, and he looked down on her. She was breathing uneasily, and a look of fear crept over her face. She turned and stared at him, her eyes softened lightly, and a small phrase left her lips.

"C-Chad...is that you?"

He put his hand to his forehead, a sudden rush of dark energy flowing through his thoughts. Who was she again...he watched memories fly by, Nova and Fauna, the battle against Ira and her gang...the night on the rooftop. It stopped there. Kiara, that's who she was.

"Uh, yeah..." he sighed, "Who's your friend...?"

The woman had disappeared and Kiara slowly sat up.

"Hetia, I'm afraid she was one of the people who kidnapped me...the same night you and Fauna went off. I'll explain more, but we have to do something about the village - wait, where's Fauna?"

"I haven't seen her since yesterday, I figured she was with you."

"No, I haven't seen her since this morning, she was headed towards the..."

"FOREST!" They said at once, turning to the burning thicket.

"We have to do something, what if she's trapped?"

"Why would she still be in there?"

"Come on Chad, we have to do something quick! Can't you sense her or something!"

"No, wait, I might be, but we'll have to be really close. I think...we'll have to go inside after her."

"After her? You know full well that we aren't supposed to go in a burning forest, there's only a limited amount of oxygen, and I fear that if we both go, nobody will be able to get help if we don't go out."

"I'll get help. Here," Chad gave her a health potion, "don't use if you don't have to, and hurry!" He dashed off towards the village. Kiara stood still for a moment, absorbing the new information. In a moment, she turned heel and hightailed towards the woodland. There was something going on, and she was sure that this wasn't anything ordinary. It was an attack. Now, she would have to go into the woods.

* * *

**Just finished spell checking this all, and it seems alright. Or at least, I hope so. I wanted to continue on, but then again, I wanted to leave it on a cliffhanger. There might be two parts for 'Into The Woods', because I want to make it nice and long. Yeah, Kiara's going in because she didn't get enough 'screen time' last time. Just wondering, did the font change at all? I had been copying and pasting a lot, but I can't tell. The story is about to head for the dramatic turn, and then we will be starting their journey. Yes! Part 2 of the story, aren't you excited? I don't think I have many 'fun facts' ******(or Spoilers, what ever you want to call it is fine with me)**, but I'll try anyways.**

* * *

**Fun Facts:**

_Chad did use dark magic.  
_

_Hetia is the same woman who took out Kiara in chapter 7._

_Chad passed the same group of kids that Kiara sent off._

_Kiara was going to lose._

_Something strange did come over Kiara._

_Everyone will have something special going on with them._

* * *

**Anyways, thanks for reviewing, and I'll guess I'll see you April 2nd. Yeah, I won't be sending out another chapter next week, I want to make them extra long and juicy, and stop using the same words twice. Besides, it seems that my family loves to use Wednesday to use the computer for hours...it only takes me an hour to write this, and sooner or later it'll take me two hours. Anyways, I'd love to see more reviews, and I can't wait to hit review number 40!**

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**Edit (3/24/15): Yeah forty plus reviews! Thanks everyone!**

* * *

**See you soon,  
**

**Yours truly,**

_**AuthorPen11**_


	18. Part 2: Into the Woods Part 1

**Alright, since I want to make my chapters longer and nice and quick, I'll leave ideas, news and other things for the author's note on the bottom. I'll answer the reviews real quick up here.**

**Legendoffun (SpellCheck Warrior)-** _Yeah, you did miss review number forty by this much (- -), but there's a good chance you could get fifty. Yeah, well I'm glad the last chapter wasn't as riddled with errors than it was at Chapter 15... Well I'm glad you love the fun facts, that's good to know. Yes, and every review counts :D_

**Libby8980 (Awesome Reviewer)-** _Yep, fire! Call the fire department! Maybe not the Hyrule Fire department (since they're not supposed to know where they live...and that might take a while...) Yep, Chad, go get help and get some fast, 'cause Kiara might need some help...just saying. Ah yes, thanks for reviewing :D_

**Short and sweet, what could I say? Anyways, on to the chapter.**

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** Chapter 18  
**

As soon as Kiara entered the forest, a large whiff of smoke swept up her nose and she coughed violently. She pulled up the end of her shirt over her, the moment and crouched down in the dirt, making along slowly.

Hang in there Fauna; I'm coming to save you...

Kiara looked over her shoulder at the light that came in from the entrance and stopped. This could be the last day she saw light on Hyrule. But she couldn't go back now. She needed to find Fauna. Kiara turned her head back and moved on. The smoke started to irritate her, and she occasionally wiped her face on her sleeve and moved further in. The smoke billowed above her head and through the branches of the trees, but it was getting harder to breathe in, because the trees were so clumped together. Kiara coughed. The smoke was getting really thick here, so the root of the fire might have been started not to far ahead. Kiara crawled away and to a small pathway she spotted up ahead. The twists and turns baffled her. No matter in what direction she turned, she seemed to always be going in circles unless she went straight. And when she went straight, the heat rose another five degrees at every two yards. It was getting unbearably hot.

"Fauna!" Kiara shouted, dropping down.

There was no answer.

"Fauna!"

Her eyes itched, and the heat sapped all her energy quickly. The ground didn't bring any comfort either. It was dry and crumbly, not very great for walking on. Kiara lifted her head and listened. She knew the forest wasn't that large if you could find the right path, but in other words, it would be hard to find your way through the thicket. And now that it was burning, Kiara could barely see anything three yards in front of her. Slowly, she moved along the dirt path she was on until she came to a fork in the road.

Right or left...right is always right...but she might have taken the left path...think quickly. I choose, er...the left path.

Kiara quickly scrambled on the path and looked about her. The forest seemed to get darker and darker, and only the glow of a distant fire prevented Kiara from falling into mud poodles strewn all over the path. Kiara scooped down into the mud, and some water trickled through the pool. Clear water. But the dirt and mud seeped through her fingers and polluted the small stream. Perhaps something or someone had clogged a small stream up ahead that could (or would) put out the fire? Kiara didn't really remember their being a pathway there in the beginning.

She pushed forward and stopped at a giant mud pile. It didn't look to secure, and might slide. She wouldn't be able to keep her footing. Kiara picked up a branch and poked the mud. She couldn't find the bottom of it, and the stick wouldn't come out either. Unless Fauna jumped over this, then this wasn't her path.

Kiara turned back and crawled back to the fork in the road, this time turning down the right path. She had moved a few feet, when the ground crumbled beneath her, and all that there was left was a loud yell and a gaping hole.

* * *

Panic gripped Fauna's heart as she darted underneath hanging branches and jumped over fallen logs. Sticks came crashing down, their crisp embers igniting the grass. Fauna tried to stamp it down, but she didn't have time to try to put out the fire. She hesitated for a moment, before jumping across a small stream. Why had it dried up? She was sure it was larger than it was yesterday. Hopefully she could solve that problem, save 'Gaia's flower' and put out the fire in one shot, but if she didn't find that flower, that wouldn't be good at all.

Fauna finally found the plant, hidden in some grass weaved together by Fauna's own hand. She used her hands to move the dirt all around the plant and pull it up. She drank some of the water she brought, which at this point was a little warm, and gently placed the plant inside, moistening its roots. She picked up the grass she weaved and pushed it inside as well, trying her best to keep the heat from drying out the plant. She put the bottle and plant in her bag. Fauna dunked. A blade flew over her head and lodged itself in a tree. Fauna flinched and turned around.

A tall man with a rugged shirt and bandana covering his face stood there, holding a dagger in his right hand, and his left hand patting down a pocket full of needles.

"Never thought I find someone running into a burning fire...tsk tsk, what did your parents teach you?" He asked, slowly walking around Fauna.

"D-did you start the fire?"

"So what if I did? Are you going to tell me to put it out? Oh, and by the way, I need to confiscate that plant of yours. I'm sure you know why."

"No, I came in here for it. I'm not giving it to you."

"Stubborn girl, I would have helped save you instead of killing you, but apparently we need to make this harder on both of us. The fire is spreading as we speak, and I wouldn't stay in here long if I were you. Now hand me the plant, and you can go out the easy route."

The fire in Fauna's eyes ignited. "I don't take short cuts..." She growled menacingly.

"Trying to be tough, huh? Well I'll teach you a lesson!" He yelled swinging his dagger at her and throwing it at her.

Fauna back flipped away from the oncoming attack and sprung up a tree to avoid the dagger. Her grin infuriated the guy.

"Slick one you are. Better than the one Hetia's about to kill."

_Kill whom?_

Fauna gripped the tree and swung down, using a tuck and role she dodged a few needles, then maneuvered herself to avoid the rest that came at lightning speed. Fauna dunked and rolled out of the way, avoiding the daggers narrowly. This called for an upper hand.

Fauna closed her eyes and a glow surrounded her. Slowly, a pair of wings formed on her back, and her eyes glowed a bit. She flew into the air, avoiding a fist aimed at her.

"You might think you have the upper hand, but I don't think so." He growled. Fauna coughed.

_Smoke already? Someone has to be still kindling it. I have to stop it, I have the plant, and this guy shouldn't stop me from protecting this forest too._

"Where do you think you're going?" He asked, "Arena trap!" He slammed his fists together, and a barrier around the exits appeared, stopping Fauna in her tracks.

"Little fairies don't escape like that from me...I have to crush them first."

Fauna swallowed and turned around, hovering right above the ground. The only way this spell would disappear, would be if his magic was drained, or if he was...killed. Fauna gulped and landed on the ground. There was no use using the wings spell, especially with the smoke. Perhaps she could try one of the close combat spells...?

He dashed at her, his fist colliding with her palm, making her wince slightly. Some dust swirled around her feet as she was pushed back a few inches. He kept using his hands and feet to keep her off balance, but Fauna had a great time avoiding the rest, since she figured he was using close combat. It wouldn't take him very long before he realized that he wasn't landing a single hit. After a sweep kick, Fauna front flipped over him and twirled around.

"Hylia's Sphere!" Her hands glowed green and pink before a blue orb flew into the guy, making him tumble backwards. His eyebrows where furrowed in disbelief.

"How...?" he muttered.

Fauna smiled, jumping over one of his attacks.

"Thought it would be easy to take me down just cause I'm in training? Think again!" A green ray of energy headed straight towards him, but he blocked it with a magic shield spell. Her grin faded.

"Now it's you turn to say 'how...?'"

Fauna's mouth gaped open, and before she knew what happened next, she was sent spiraling into a tree. She groaned in pain and tried to sit up, but a sharp pain in her back kept her down. She bit her lip and struggled to a sitting position.

"Tired already? I was sure you had the upper hand...well, at least you did." He grinned, a wicked smile erasing all signs of him being tired out. "I'll give you one last chance to give me that plant and leave with your life. If not..."

By this time, Fauna managed to stand up, quickly, she used a healing spell. The smell of mint surrounded her and she breathed in easier. The air flowed through her lungs once again, and her head stopped spinning. She held onto her pack and glared.

"No, I won't let you take it. It's mine, and I'm not offering it to give away!"

"Foolish girl!" He yelled, darting at her, his fist colliding with the tree. Fauna had narrowly slid underneath and rolled away. The man stood still for a moment as his hand connected with the tree, before letting out a low groan. Fauna saw the shields flicker for a moment. Of course! If he was in pain, the barrier would flicker slightly, and for a few moments it would be down. She'd need him to do that again, and slip out once it started to dim. Then she could escape. Attacking the barrier headfirst would leave her vulnerable, and it was definitely a bad idea.

Fauna turned around and dodged a barrage of kicks and fists headed for her. With a few swift dodges and a back flip, she managed to escape. Reaching in her bag, Fauna pulled out a small orb and hurled it at the guy. He quickly caught it and smirked.

"Thought this little thing would have done any harm?"

"Yeah. Why don't you try moving?" Fauna taunted, a sly smile appearing on her face. Immediately he attempted to move, but his body wouldn't react. The barriers began to disappear. "Better luck next time!" Fauna shouted, rushing off.

Phew, that was great. Good thing I took that potion class. Those herbs do stand up to their name, but I have to hurry. It'll wear off eventually, and I've stuck around longer than I -

A shriek in the forest snapped Fauna out of her thoughts and she stopped. Was that...Kiara? Looking around, Fauna couldn't see anyone, but she moved quickly in the direction of the yell. After a quick hike, a large chasm before Fauna made her gasp. She looked down a deep hole. It was silent. The smoke became a little thicker and Fauna coughed once more. She had to help Kiara and get out of here, but wasn't Chad supposed to be with her? It was strange.

Well I have to act quickly. The fire is getting out of hand, and I don't see any sign of Chad. And if Kiara is hurt, I better get down there. Besides, that dude will be here any second if I'm correct. Better jump down and disappear.

Fauna dropped down the gaping hole, and in a moment, she was gone.

* * *

Crystals and dim lights surrounded the area and the loud roaring of a stream was not far behind. The river swirled around many landings and pushed ashore an unconscious figure. The crystals shimmered and reflected the twirling torrent of water as it made its course downward, further into the deep cave where its home was located.

A small wheezing cough came from the body, and rolled over.

* * *

Kiara's eyes slowly opened, but quickly shut as a bright light blinded her temporarily. She coughed again, before dropping down. Her stomach twisted in pain. She couldn't remember anything, besides the fact that she was terrified, she was in a dark place, and the only thing on her mind was finding someone. The next thing she knew, she was falling, and then she blanked out.

_Ugh, where am I?_ Kiara looked around for the first time and sat up, propping herself against a rock. The one thing she couldn't remember was why she was so terrified. This place was quiet, except for the roaring of the river. River? _Funny, I don't remember hearing a river, or a stream, just the crackle of a nice, warm and homey fire. Right...? My head is just a mix of thoughts; I really need to clear it._

Kiara sat up. Despite having a slight headache, she couldn't remember anything else. She was panicking, looking for someone, and fell. Surely there was something missing. Like, who was she looking for again? Kiara stooped over a small puddle and looked in her reflection. A girl with reddish brown hair and green eyes looked back at her. Kiara clenched her head.

"This doesn't make sense," Kiara thought out loud, "I don't remember this at all. In fact, I could have sworn that I was in a dark, cold place...but why would it be cold if there were a fire going? I'm sure I panicked because of that eerie glow...hold on...what am I saying? I was pretty sure I wasn't here at all. That must have been a magical teleportation orb or something, because that doesn't make any sense at all. Besides, who am I supposed to be? I look way different than I was earlier!"

Kiara stood up and started pacing for a moment.

"But my mind is out of sorts. I don't remember any of this. I remember I was looking for something...no, wasn't it someone? Yeah, I was hurrying to escape and…that's it. No. That wasn't all; I fell down a dark pit. And... Voila! I look suddenly different and feel a little...dizzy."

She fell down on the soft sand and clutched her head. A sharp pain soared through her body and she fell down. She rolled over, scrunching up in pain, clutching her left hand in pain. Her body started to quake violently with pain.

_'Make it stop! Make it stop!'_

_'Who are you?'_

_'I'm me! Who are you?'_

_'Well whatever, this feels really horrible, make it stop already!'_

_'I'm not doing anything!'_

Kiara stopped. The pain went away. Her body stopped shaking. The sharp pain disappeared. It seemed as if everything went silent. But her surroundings disappeared. She was floating about in some kind of empty space. As she levitated above the ground, she noticed some images fly by. She opened her mouth to say something, but nothing came out. A figure in the distance seemed to float closer to her until it shaped into someone else. No, it wasn't her, but she had reddish brown hair and green eyes. A bit like her...reflection? She stared at her in disbelief.

_'W-who are you?'_

_'Me? Who the heck are you?' She yelled_

_'I'm sorry, I don't understand!'_

_'Don't understand what? I wake up to be floating in some kind of unconscious space with strange memories whizzing past me! And now, I see some strange girl staring back at me, surrounding by my memories. Please, tell me who you are, and what you are doing here!'_

_'I'm sorry, I don't know what's going on, but there must be some kind of magic. I'm telling you, I don't understand any of this!'_

_'Well tell me what was going on before this.'_

_'Yeah, alright. I minds as well.'_

_The atmosphere changed, and suddenly, they were levitating in a dark, dusty library. A girl with red hair and turquoise eyes looked about before creeping to a ladder and pushing it gently aside. She looked about, moving a book to reveal a secret passage way. She looked about again before creeping down the hall. When she came to the end, she saw a red eerie glow. Holding her breath, she walked forward and peeped in the room. On a silver pedestal, a red orb levitated in the air. It glowed and dimmed constantly, and a small humming sound could be heard coming from it. The girl crept forward and took off her bag, about to secure it, when a loud thump disturbed her. The orb dropped to the ground, and she fell on top of it. Without thinking, she grabbed the orb, a beam of red light erupted, and in a moment, the object - with the girl - disappeared._

_'That's what happened.'_

_'What spooked you?'_

_'I think someone was following me, and I lost my concentration. All I know is, that I'm not who I used to be.'_

_'What where you taking?'_

_'An ancient artifact.'_

_'Ahem, I met stealing. If you were taking a ancient artifact from its natural home, then you were stealing it.'_

_'Hey, but I had to take it before he came. If his messengers got their hands on it, and delivered it to him, then Hyrule would be in danger!'_

_'H-Hyrule?'_

_'That's where I'm from, what are you, Gerudo?'_

_'No! I'm a...a...'_ Her face grew red as Ziri's words rung through their ears.

'_When you cross the border (because I'm sure you will), there are strict rules that are keeping your homeland safe! Like for one, you can't tell anyone where you are from!'_

_'Who on earth is that? Sounds like a grumpy old lady.'_

_'Ziri, and she is not that old.'_ Kiara replied.

_'Well, since we are here, I minds as well as tell you my name. My name's Topaz, sorry about intruding your private space.' Topaz said_

_'Oh, yeah, I'm Kiara.' Kiara replied_

_'So, Kiara,' Topaz said, 'how am I...how am I in...'_

_"What?'_

_'How am I in your body?'_

A long silence followed. Kiara looked away for a moment.

_'I don't know, but I'm sure that orb has something to do with this.'_

_'Some how...me to - yuck, what's on my face?'_

Suddenly, a bright light blinded both of them. In a moment, Kiara's face was in a sandy puddle. In a moment, it was out, spitting the sand that managed to get in her mouth.

_'Ew, that's disgusting! I'm glad I don't taste that!'_

_'What do you mean? Wait, it's me...Kiara! I'm back with my own body!'_

_'Oh, yeah. Well. This is interesting...what do we do?'_

_'Find a way out of here. Let me tell you something, since we share the same body - for the moment anyways, my name is Kiara -'_

_'Which I know...' remarked Topaz_

Kiara rolled her eyes.

_'And I'm a sheikah.'_

_'A WHAT?'_

_'A sheikah.'_

A grin was plastered over Kiara's face at Topaz's surprise.

_'Y-y-you mean you're part of that mysterious group that Lady Impa is from? I thought they were...you know, all gone!'_

_'That's the secret, we aren't allowed to tell anyone of our existence, and so you have to promise not to tell anyone.'_

_'Promise.'_

_'By the way, what's it like up there?'_

_'Pretty normal, I can see what you see, but it's more like I'm floating around your body, and I can hear your thoughts, and some of your memories keep on flashing through my eyes. Ugh, it's getting a little tight.'_

A whooshing sound rung in her ears, and in a moment, Kiara's mind was clear again.

_'H-how did you do that?'_

_'Clear the stuff? I just pushed them, that's all. But we've wasted enough time, we need to find a way out of here.'_

_'Your right Topaz, Keep a eye out for me, will you?'_

Kiara felt herself nod her head, and then she proceeded forward. The crystal lights shimmered above them, and as she continued down a path, the roaring of the water began to get distant before it became quiet altogether. Then it slowly became dark. Kiara stopped and broke a piece of crystal off like a flashlight and continued. The path kept getting darker, but the crystal seemed to get brighter. After some silence, Kiara saw a light ahead of her.

_'Hey, Topaz, do you see that light, or is it just me?'_

_'Oh, what? Yeah I see the light, what do you think it is?'_

_'We'll see in a moment.'_

* * *

The cold water swirled around Fauna and carried her off into the dark tunnel. Trying her hardest to keep calm and afloat, she swirled down the stream until it became dangerous. She spun around in circles until she was washed onto a small island in the middle of the river. Fauna coughed up some water and sat up.

"Never again..." she mumbled, coughing once more, "that water isn't as good as it looks. But when did the water go underground? Maybe this isn't the same one I thought it was. Perhaps there was another I didn't know about? At least the fire is gone, I can water Gaia's plant again." Fauna reached for her bag and gasped. Searching around quickly, she gasped. In the water, her bag floated down the stream. Without a second thought, Fauna dived in, swimming after the bag.

"Can't lose it now," she mumbled. Fauna's hand darted forward and she grabbed the bag just in time. But at that moment, the river hit a rough bump, and next thing she knew, Fauna was falling down a waterfall. A yell came from Fauna's mouth. She closed her eyes as she came flying down at a fast speed. Suddenly, she stopped. She opened her eyes to see the waterfall...on the roof? She noticed she was hanging upside down, and something was holding her leg and prevented her from going splat in the water. She looked at her feet (which was where her head should have been) and saw a vine wrapped around it. Fauna shivered. The only vines she knew where the...the ones that wanted to kill her. Softly, it placed her on the riverbank. Fauna let out a breath that she had held in for too long.

_Good riddance, this forest is creepier than I thought!_

Fauna took in a few breaths and emptied out her bag. She gasped. Everything was ruined but Fauna's plant and her heart potion. It was a little wet, but her books, chalk; everything else she had was gone. Fauna sat up. She was dripping wet, and shivering. She dragged the objects that weren't soiled and climbed further up the bank and sat down. She took off the extra jacket she was wearing and squeezed it out. Placing it on the sand, she took off her boots and emptied out the water, laying them on the sand beside her. She looked around for the vine, but it was nowhere to be found.

_For the best I guess._

Fauna squeezed out her hair and let it drop. Her damp hair stuck to her face. After squeezing out every soaked article of clothing she had, she started a small fire to dry everything. She kept the plant away from it of course, fearing that it might catch aflame.

"The poor forest, how did this happen? How did I not suspect that something like this was going to happen? It seems all too real. It's like my nightmare is...coming true?" Fauna looked into the dancing flames.

Several minutes flew by, and she was checking each piece of clothing to make sure it was dry. They weren't completely dry, just damp. Not taking any chances, she slipped on the driest she found and folded the rest. She put out the fire and took out the driest pair of clothes at the bottom of her bag, putting her plant and potion in the side pockets. She closed it, and put the bag on her back. Standing up, Fauna examined her surroundings. For one, she was starving, two, she had no idea where she (or Kiara) where, and three, she was pretty sure that vine wasn't gone for good.

"This is a strange place indeed, I probably should find out where I came from and climb up that waterfall. Maybe one of the tracking spells can help." Fauna's right hand began to glow slightly. She closed her eyes and began to picture Kiara. All she could see, was a muddle of a figure walking along with a crystal in their hand. The vision faded. "Kiara is here, alright, but where is she? She must have washed ashore up there. Time for some wings."

Fauna closed her eyes and jumped up. She fell back down.

"Huh? What? I just used a spell earlier, I didn't use...that much energy." The long swim came back to her mind. "Well it's time for Sheikah 101." She darted towards the side of the waterfall, and with a handspring, jumped a few feet into the air. With her right hand, she gripped a rock and hung on. Using her momentum, she swung like a pendulum until she was at the next landing point. She continued in this fashion until she finally climbed up the falls. She stood up and looked around. Tall, thin crystals hung above her, glowing radiantly. Glancing around her surroundings, Fauna noticed the vine from earlier. A little magic would help get her out of this situation. She was standing on a small island in the middle of the river when she climbed up, and the vine was on one side of the bank, if it came to her, she could tightrope across.

**_Fauna, don't you get it? Gaia means earth...you'll understand later..._**

"Right, she wasn't kidding. Gaia does mean earth, so that means maybe her magic comes more from nature, unlike the magic I usually use...maybe that isn't used up yet. Let's try." Fauna lifted up her hand and it began to radiate a green and pink energy. Slowly, the vine reacted, uncurling itself and slowly hovering over the water. When it made it to Fauna, it pushed down into the earth.

"Wow, my plant manipulation skills just got a one plus! This is great, now I can cross. But step number one, never look down." Fauna put on foot down and continued like this until she crossed. When she hopped off the plant whipped back and appeared where it was. "This could be helpful." Fauna said aloud, picking up the plant and wrapping it up. It made a sturdy, strong rope that Fauna felt would help later. She put it in her bag and continued on. As she passed some of the crystals, she noticed footprints, and her hand started to glow.

"It's working! And these tracks are fresh! Kiara was here I can feel it. That means she isn't to far ahead. I better hurry," Fauna took a piece of crystal, "and take this with me."

She followed the footprints into a path and walked along.

* * *

Chad's legs took him as fast as he could to get help. He had waited long enough. Not only were the flames getting worse, but also Kiara wasn't back yet. A good ten minutes had passed. Searching around, he found out that the town wasn't faring to well. The flames had already licked up two-thirds of the town, and the rest was a lost cause. Fifty minutes past. It had been an hour, but it seemed that the forest fire still wasn't famished. It had started to spread to the grass. Chad hadn't stuck around, he had to find help, and fast.

"Ziri! Ire! Anyone? I could use some help!" Chad yelled, dashing towards the town.

"We'll help."

Chad stopped and spun around. Ira, Kari and Raven were behind him. They were slightly charred from the fire.

"You? You wouldn't help...would you?"

"Chad, I am not a heartless being, I'd help a fellow sheikah! What's the problem, you can see we don't have much to spare. I was searching for you anyways. Where's Nova?"

"N-Nova?"

"Yeah, I haven't seen her since the start of the festival. Neither have I seen her family. I've been asking around, but ever since this fire, it seems like a bad omen. Where's your team, and where is Nova?"

"Nova...she's gone. Fauna is missing, she was at the forest and, Kiara went after her, but it's been an hour! The forest won't be able to hold on to this much longer, and Kiara still isn't back."

"Then Raven and Kari can find them."

"I'm afraid we can't have anymore people go in there. There's to many strange things happening - argh!" Chad groaned, clutching his head. He toppled to the ground.

_Not now, not now, not now!_

Ira's face turned into one of shock and worry.

"Chad, are you alright? What's wrong? Are you wounded?"

"N-no..." Chad shakily replied. He gripped the ground, "Fauna...Kiara...where?"

"In the forest, you just told us that..." Ira trailed. Dark wisps were coming from Chad's eyes. He growled again. "Chad!"

He side glanced at her before the wisps disappeared. He dropped down on the ground, passing out.

* * *

"Chad...Chad wake up? Chad?"

His eyes flickered open, but shut immediately. His head throbbed with pain and he let out a rugged breath. He opened his eyes slowly.

"Huh? How long was I out?"

"Two minutes, but the town isn't doing too well, neither is the forest. If you want to see Fauna or Kiara, we are going to have to go in. I know that's a bad idea, but Kari and Raven are great spell-casters, they'll protect us."

"No... We can't go... no more sacrifices." Chad mumbled, sitting up.

"Chad? Are you alright?" Ira asked, her face a little pale, "you were acting strange earlier, it was like...you were surrounded by dark magic...like Nova was during that battle."

"L-like Nova was? Battle? What are you talking about?"

"I'll explain later. For now...we have to help Fauna and Kiara, come on!"

* * *

**It's up to Chad to find where is friends are and save them, certainly it isn't to late?! Hopefully, Raven, Ira and Kari can help Chad find where his teammates are and get them out safe in sound. And what's this about with Topaz and Kiara? And when will Fauna find Kiara?  
**

**Well, that was long, do you like it long? ****I'm glad inspiration was flowing then, because man, this took a while to spell check and write. I'm sure there is still a few errors, but that's all I could detect. I don't have much fun facts today either.  
**

**Fun Facts**

_Ira isn't heartless._

_Something is up with Chad._

_Topaz is important._

_There's more to these strange things then you think, and the journey will begin soon!_

_**Yeah! I got 5,000 words in this chapter!**_

* * *

**Last edited for errors: 4/4/15**

**Well, I'm glad I finally finished it, I'll edit it if I find some more errors after my 'rechecks.' Anyways, please review, and I'm glad you are reading this!  
**

**Yours truly,**

_**AuthorPen11**_


	19. Into the Woods Part 2

**Well the last chapter went by smoothly. So, what do you think will happen next? This is the second part of 'Into the Woods' and also the second part of WotST. Just so you know, I may rename it within a few days to something shorter. I have a few names rolling about in my head. As for now, I'll try to fill you in with what's going on with Kiara (and Topaz). So, if you haven't guessed, she hit her head (say what you want) and forgot what is going on, so it's going to be a shock when she sees the village and finds Fauna (she might not recognize her...). Anyways, let's review.**

**Legendoffun -** _A long chapter must have a lot of errors, because that's how it always goes. I hate when that happens though...I'm glad you approve of Kiara and Topaz, I just had to add something interesting to Kiara (but that's not all). Oh yes, and they might meet Impa along the way (:P) Yeah, you did read the chapter correctly, there will be a lot of explaining to do..._

**Libby8980 -** _Of course you are important! I love readers, they always help motivate me :) Seeing your reviews brightens my day and gives me the extra boost to continue on with the chapter (and story) and make sure it isn't dull, short and nothing but...well you know... And I'm glad you can't wait until the next chapter, because I'm going to make it good :D_

**So that's all, but let's continue on and I'll make sure that my computer/laptop doesn't do anything stupid and lose my work.**

**Goal for words: 6,000 words.**

* * *

**Chapter 19**

Kiara continued down the tunnel, the light getting brighter with each step. She stopped, only a few feet ahead. Her head had begun to spin again, and she felt like she was burning up.

_'Kiara, are you alright? What's wrong? Why'd you stop, I don't see anything wrong, maybe it is outside again.' Topaz asked_

_'Huh? No, I just feel a little lightheaded.'_

Kiara sat down and placed her hand on her forehead. It had begun to swell, and when she touched it, she flinched. It felt as if it was burnt, but the pain was more intense everywhere in her body than on her head. Kiara took in a great breath and stood up again. This time, her legs wobbled, and her body shook violently. She coughed viciously, and stopped, only to let out a few wheezes of air. Kiara dropped onto the ground.

_'I can't get up, it's just too tough. For some reason, I can't move much either, it's getting pretty hard to...breathe...'_

Using the little strength and air she had left, she continued towards the light, dragging herself as fast as she could. But just as soon as she approached the entrance, a whiff of a strange chemical made her head fuzzy, and she fainted.

* * *

Continuing down the path, Fauna looked left and right for Kiara. She could have decided to rest on one of the rocks, but Fauna didn't think she would stay long. There was still footprints, but Fauna wasn't sure whether or not Kiara was still in the tunnel. She was looking for signs that told how long ago Kiara had traveled, but there was nothing to see.

_I'll find her eventually, she couldn't have gone far._

Without paying any attention to the road, Fauna noticed something bright ahead of her. She saw a small light in the distance and a small flame flicker and disappear. Alarmed and confused, Fauna hurried down the path. What could that be? She didn't know. And of course, Fauna wouldn't want to know if Kiara was getting ambushed by that guy. He did say he had some accomplices with him, so he obviously wasn't alone. But after a few moments, Fauna wasn't as interested in the light, and traveled back to her thoughts.

_Why would Kiara come after me? She knows it isn't safe. And Chad better not do anything rash, we don't have time for catching more hatch-lings as they jump out of their nest. It's not safe, and it'll eventually wear me out. I don't -_

Fauna tripped over something and dropped the crystal, falling face first into the path. The hard dirt wasn't very welcoming, and Fauna wasn't too pleased to meet it. Moving away, she stood up, and using a magic sphere, examined the area. She wasn't too far from the light ahead of her. She noticed something before her, not too far away. Walking slowly this time, Fauna made sure she watched where she was going to avoid falling again. She noticed someone - or something, on the ground. Hurrying forward, Fauna gasped.

"Kiara?" She whispered, kneeling down. She didn't move, but she could hear her breathing. It was raggedly and shallow. And there was various burn marks all over here.

_The fire, she didn't escape much of it I see...that's terrible, but what could have happened, and why was she wandering about?_

"Kiara, are you alright?" Fauna asked again, shaking her lightly. When she didn't respond, Fauna put her hand on her forehead. She withdrew her hand quickly. Kiara was burning up! Fauna felt guilty for using the rest of her water to preserve the plant. She couldn't take Kiara back with her, and she couldn't leave her here too. The only thing she could do was take her to the path ahead and defend her until she woke up.

Using as much strength as she could muster, Fauna put Kiara on her back (piggyback style) and slowly made for the path ahead.

_Kiara, wow, your very heavy...I wish you would wake up. Supporting you is easier than carrying you._

In a moment, Fauna was out in the light. It blinded her. She couldn't see much until her eyes adjusted to the light. Fauna was relieved to find herself at a spring.

"Great, this is good. Hold on Kiara, it won't be long before you stop burning." Fauna mumbled, setting Kiara down. She took off her pack and used it as a cushion for Kiara's head. She took one of her shirts and soaked it in the water, squeezing it out, and placing it on her forehead. Fauna was quite surprised when she picked up the cloth and found it steaming and dry. She placed it back in the water and squeezed it out lightly, leaving it quite damp. She folded it and placed on Kiara's head.

"I wonder what could have happened." Mused Fauna, contemplating all the things that could have happened. "I don't think it was branches, 'cause she would have had a few scrapes, and they couldn't have healed that quickly. Something happened that I don't know, but what?"

She heard Kiara cough beside her. Feverishly she searched her bag for some herbs, but to her disappointment, there were none.

"They must have washed out. I'll have to use my last reserve, magic. Maybe one of those simple cure spells will work. Or perhaps I can make the right plant grow. I should see if I can find yarrow, or elderberry, or peppermint. That could help her. Hmm, I remember that one of the native plants always grow by springs...what was it called? Right, fairyroot...that's got to be around here somewhere."

She stood up, and walked about the room. It was very large, but only a small part of it was actually dry ground. Fauna skimmed the water surface for vines that she could use. Not seeing any, she held her breath and looked about underwater. In the far corner, she saw the green and pink weed swaying side to side with the spring. Fauna pulled her head back out.

"Ah, so there _is_ fairyroot here. In that corner over there."

Fauna went back to Kiara and soaked the cloth again, reapplying it. She took off her boots and dived in, swimming as fast as she could until she was above the plant, and then diving down to retrieve it. She yanked on the root, but it didn't budge. She pulled again, and it loosened slightly. Meanwhile, the air in her lungs was running out. She swam back up and took in another breath of air before diving down again. She pulled on the patch she found earlier, and in a moment, she was swimming back to shore. She placed the herb beside Kiara and wrung out her damp clothes. She searched her bag for the other pair and changed into it. After she was fairly dry, Fauna started crushing the herbs on a rock. She pulled out one of her empty jars (which were fairly small, only made for taking a small specimen and containing it for further research. She filled it with two parts water and one part herbs. Closing the lid, she did a small fire spell and started to heat up the water. It started to bubble. In a moment, she thought it was fairly hot. She put the warm end of the glass in the water to cool it down and took it back out.

After putting the rest of the herb in a jar, she knelt down beside Kiara.

"This is just to help you, so no coughing that back up." Fauna mumbled, making sure that Kiara drank every last drop. After she had drank it, Fauna was satisfied to see that she didn't spit it back out. Instead, her breathing got steadily stronger. Then she opened her eyes and immediately sat up. She was disoriented and scared.

"What happened? Where am I? What's going on? Who are you? What is going on here? Why are you here?"

"Slow down, you just woke up and then you are bombarding me with questions? But I'll answer them, nonetheless. You were burning up with a fever, which I just tended too. You are beside an underground spring. You went after me to get me back after I ran into a burning forest (which I am not proud of at all). Silly, you know it's me...and as I said earlier, I was tending to your fever. That should answer the last two questions for you."

"Oh...really? But I'm sorry, I really _don't _know who you are. But I think I've seen you. Pardon, but have we met before, and where?"

Puzzled by Kiara's response, Fauna remained quiet for a moment. She took in a breath.

"I met you at my first lesson for Sheikah training. Though I usually hung around with Chad, I thought you were very interesting. And yes, we have met, I'm your best friend, and part of our group...remember?"

"Oh...really?"

"Please stop saying that. Whenever you say that, I have a feeling you have _no _idea what I was talking about. Maybe you're just dehydrated, let me get you some water." Fauna replied, scooping water up in the container and handing it to Kiara. It took at least fifteen refills before she felt satisfied. After that, Fauna repacked her things.

"I'm glad I found you when I did Kiara," Fauna said, "I wasn't sure how long you had been searching for me, and I think you were only out for half an hour. What's going on outside, don't tell me Chad was with you..."

"Oh...really? Err, I'm sorry, uh..."

"Fauna."

"Yeah, I'm sorry Fauna, but I don't really remember much of this. And pardon me for asking, but who is Chad?"

Fauna face-palmed, and a long exasperated sigh from Fauna let Kiara know that she wasn't pleased.

"For Impa's sake... Kiara what DO you know? Please don't tell me I have to refresh your memory or something!" Fauna groaned

"Well...I remember that I was somewhere in a library - no, that wasn't it, that was something different...I washed ashore. At the riverside. I was walking along a path. I blanked out. I'm a sheikah. This is weird."

Fauna groaned.

"Of _course _you're a sheikah! I am too! I know you! And 'walking along a path, washed ashore at a riverside, and telling me you were in a library' has nothing that can help me find out what happened. And you were in a library when there was an attack and people panicking?" She face palmed again, "someone help me." She muttered.

"I'm so sorry, but I didn't know that...well you see, I'm not quite familiar with my surroundings..."

Fauna looked up in confusion.

"Ki, tell me my name, my other friend's name (Chad), and your name."

Kiara paused.

"Hmm, you are Fauna. Uh, Link - no, I meant Chad. Yes, Chad, and I'm...err...Ki...Kiara?"

"_Yes_." Fauna said, nearly hissing and shouting at the same time, "So you do know something. But you must be suffering from a concussion. Don't worry, once we get back to the village, they can probably help us. Can you walk?"

"Yeah, of course I can." Kiara replied, jumping up. As soon as her feet touched the ground, she fell over.

_This might take a while..._

* * *

At the village, the town couldn't be saved. Everything was burnt down to the ground. The townspeople were gloomy, depressed, and quite hungry. Not a lot of provisions was saved, and no one else was happier to find the forest on fire. Everyone was tired and exhausted, even Ziri and Ire. Several people needed to be tended to for burns, bruises and wounds. The small pond nearby was exhausted, and no one really trusted the well water anymore. When Chad, Raven, Ira and Kari arrived, they couldn't find anyone to help them with the forest fire, and no one was happy to hear that a few people were _in _the forest when it was set aflame.

"There's nothing we can do Chad, I'm sorry. We can't take everyone who is well and make a search party. Fauna and Kiara shouldn't have left. And I don't think you can go by yourself. It isn't safe to send anyone else to find them. We'll have to hope for the best." Ira said, placing her hand on Chad's shoulder. He tensed up, swatting her hand away.

"I don't need your sympathy, nor do I need your pity," he growled menacingly, "and I'm not weak either. _You're weak_. I can go by myself, I'm stronger enough to do it - you know I'm the strongest in the group, so I can perfectly handle this by myself. You can sit here and help those cowards, but I'm going to find my group...and my friends."

He whirled around and rushed off back to the forest.

"Chad no!" Ira yelled, but he was either out gone, or was ignoring her. Her knees shook slightly, and she fell on the ground, weeping. "Why did all of this go so wrong?"

Kari tried her best to comfort Ira, but it wasn't working. Ira was frightened and worried. She knew it'd be tough to hear that her teammates died, and probably couldn't go through waiting another year for a new group. Raven started pacing.

"Ira, stop whining. It was his choice. And he probably didn't really mean that you were weak." Raven said

"Yes he did mean I was weak! I only wanted his attention, and to be in his group. I wanted to dance with him, but he didn't care," Ira sobbed, "he meant everything that he said, and he didn't take anything back. I am useless, I am nothing but weak."

"Ira...that's not true." Kari said, trying to console her, "he _will _take it back once I get to him, and he'll apologize too."

"Kari, don't overdo it. Ira, calm down. He can try to help the town if we can't help him. It's his choice, besides, there are several people who needed to be tended too." Raven replied, getting up and heading to the small village in the making.

There was only large tents here and there, and dozens of injured people lay in makeshift beds. This was the outside of the camp. A small group was making a large mud house hospital for the injured and wounded. A storm was beginning to brew, and no one wanted the sick to get cold and die that way. They'd do all they could to save them.

* * *

He rushed to the burning forest, not looking back once. He wasn't sure which way Kiara went in, but he knew he could find her with a spell or too. He closed his eyes and everything disappeared around him, and he reappeared in the burning thicket. Looking about, he saw dry footprints leading ahead.

_Just hold on, I'll find you both._

Chad looked about. The smoke obscured his vision, so he could only see about four feet ahead. He crawled low and searched for a hidden path that Fauna might have taken, but instead, the path only took him to a gaping hole. He looked into it and saw something twinkling in the depths.

"River or stream? I shouldn't just jump down." Chad pushed a rock into the water. _Plop_. It wasn't too far below. Chad pulled on a vine and slowly lowered himself down. He pushed downwards and looked about for signs of his friends. Nope. Nowhere to be seen. He groaned. Perhaps they weren't even here, maybe they were taken. But why? All the forest creatures must have gone into hiding once they smelt the smoke, or fled. So unless _someone _else was in here, they couldn't have just disappeared. The smoke was getting thicker as Chad waited about.

_There's only but so much time. If I try the river, there's a good chance I'll find them, because I think they went down this way. There's only one way to find out._

Chad let go of the vine and fell down into the roaring river.

* * *

"Alright Kiara, that's enough. Are you feeling better? As if, can you move your legs and walk?" Fauna asked, sighing.

_Why is she acting so stubborn? She knows who I am, but it's probably a concussion, she shouldn't think too hard about it._

"Yeah, I think I can walk." Kiara replied, standing up. Her legs shook, as if she hadn't been standing for several hours. She took one shaky step. "It just feels a little weird. And I'm a bit...what's the word, stranger than I remember."

"Concussion it is." Fauna mumbled, "Come on, let's get you out of here. Lean on my shoulder, I'll help you balance yourself."

"Oh, all right, thanks. I'm ready."

Leaning against Fauna, Kiara slowly begin walking beside her leaving the spring behind them. Fauna had previously cleaned out her specimen jars and filled them with water, just in case. Using a magic sphere, Fauna lit the way and they started off. A few bats fluttered above, obviously disturbed by the bright light Fauna's magic was emitting. But they didn't stay silent for long.

"So, Fauna, you use magic?" Kiara asked, quite puzzled with the energy sphere hovering in her hands, "so, everyone can do that?"

"No, not everyone knows this kind of spell, but they could easily learn. And most people don't use magic in our tribe. They use the sacred sheikah arts. Oh, and don't think about it, I'm sure you won't remember that either."

"Oh, sorry. Did I do something wrong?"

Fauna sighs.

"No, it's just that, I wish you hadn't followed me. It isn't safe down here, and I was attacked in the forest. I didn't think you would actually run after me in the burning thicket, you should have stayed there. Now I'm wondering whether or not Chad followed you. I just have a feeling that he did. Not only that, but sense you don't remember much, I don't think you can really help me. You see, the regular Kiara would know a few things to help, but it's as if you've forgotten everything."

"Oh...sorry."

"No need."

They continued down the path in silence, Kiara walking slowly beside Fauna, and Fauna using her magic sphere to light the way. They didn't bother to pick up the fallen energy crystal 'flashlight' because it began to dim, and no longer gave as much light as it used too. Fauna had no idea what time it was, and she was sure several hours must have passed. She was quite exhausted. As soon as they left the tunnel, Fauna spoke.

"Why don't we take a break? Since we're safe down here, I don't think much will happen. I'm going to take a nap, you be the lookout, and wake me up if anything _eventful _occurs." She yawned, lying down beside the tunnel. She dug a trench and laid down, just disappearing behind the sand wall. Kiara slipped down with her, peeking her head out and watching. Fauna closed her eyes and rolled over.

A long silence followed. Besides the roaring of the waterfall, there was nothing else that moved. Kiara's eyes drooped down and she snuggled against the wall of sand, drawing her head back. Her mind started to get fuzzy, and memories flew here and there. Nothing was straight, different memories from different places confused her. She wasn't quite sure if she was still Kiara. They disappeared in a moment, and she dozed off into a fitful dream.

...

_Rain poured down in torrents all around_, _and a figure dashed as quickly as they could through the falling raindrops. They paused for a moment, breathing in and out. A roll of thunder and a flash of lightning lit up the sky. As it streaked down from the heavens, the lightning caught hold of a barn and engulfed it in flames. The light from the fire in the distance blazed brightly, trying hard to avoid the rain. No matter how fast the rain came down, the fire found more fuel and battled against the weather. A strong gust of wind blew sparks on to the house beside it, and smoke poured out. The rain could not put out the fire, and the flames swayed, biting the wooden home. The figure let out a small sob and fled._

_It seemed as if hours had flown by as the figure continued running down the muddy path ways and jumping over swollen streams. Water splashed around their ankles, but they didn't bother to stop. They couldn't. On and on they traveled until they stopped at a large building. It was dark inside. Scurrying up to the front porch, they felt for a small key underneath a loose plank. Pulling it out, they shoved the small key into the lock. Their hands shivered as a cold breeze surrounded their hands. The key turned and the door croaked, opening slowly. The person rushed in, took the key out, and locked the door. It wasn't quite as warm inside as it was outside. Books on tall, wide shelves went wall to wall. Pushing the key in their pocket, they slowly walked over to the closest bookshelf. They pushed it aside, because they weren't really books, but props placed up as if there was nothing behind it. A wooden door was there. Using the same key, they pushed it into the lock and turned. The door groaned, opening quickly._

_Glancing around in the darkness, the figure darted down the passageway, and stopped. A strange, eerie red glow could be seen ahead of them. Slowly, they crept along until they were in the same room. On a pedestal, there was a red orb shimmering in the dark. It brightened slightly, but the eerie glow cast strange shadows. Reaching into their bag, they pulled out a glove and slipped it on. Picking up the orb, they examined it carefully. The glow brightened, glimmering in the darkness. The red glow sparkled, and inside the orb, there was an orange and red substance swirling inside. A spark hovered inside of it. The eyes of the cloaked person sparkled in interest. After a moment or too, they were about to place it in their bag when they heard wood splinter and crack._

_They heard the sound of beating rain, and a strong gust of wind howled loudly down the hall. Surprised, they dropped the orb. It cracked ever so slightly. In their panic, the cloaked figure threw off their hood and picked up the orb. But they didn't use the same gloved hand, and as soon as their skin made contact with the glowing object, they glowed red, orange, yellow, and blue. They dropped down to the ground, a look of pain and shock in their eyes. Their vision began to blur, and a loud yell could be heard down the hall, in an instant. Everything vanished._

_Inside a dark cloud, there was silence. Everything was quiet, but suddenly, there was a wave of cold water, and washed ashore laid a figure, shakily dragging themselves up a riverbank. They collapsed, exhausted from the past events._

...

Kiara sprung up, beads of sweat covered her forehead. Her hair stuck, and she felt damp.

_A bad dream, that's all it was...was it?_

She looked about. She wasn't sure how long she slept, but nothing had happened in the outside world. When Kiara jolted awake, Fauna mumbled something in her sleep and rolled over. There was a good chance she was only half sleep, so Kiara tried to relax. But she couldn't. Even when she had awoken again, she could still hear the thunder and the lightning flashed across her mind. The beating rain made her nervous. The splintering wood made her cringe. She coughed. Her head went blurry, and she couldn't remember what happened after that. Kiara sighed. She had no idea what was going on, but she decided to ask Topaz.

_'Topaz...Topaz are you there?'_

A long silence followed.

_'Topaz?'_

_'Hmm, oh, yes? I'm here, sorry, I'm just a little tired. Did I miss anything?'_

_'Miss anything? How could you sleep through that dream?'_

_'What dream? I wasn't dreaming? I was trying to think about what might be going on back at home. Say, what do you think is happening at Hyrule?'_

_'I don't know, but I guess I could ask when I get back. I just have a strange feeling, as if something is creeping up towards me. Do you see anything?'_

_'No, everything's fine. Why don't you wake up Fauna and get moving already? I think you've been here long enough...'_

_'Yeah, let's get moving.' _

The conversation ended and Kiara stood up. She stretched her legs and looked around. Fauna was still asleep, and the waterfall continued to talk with the river.

"Wake up Fauna, we should get moving. Whether we are actually safe here or not, I rather not be asleep to find out." Kiara mumbled, shaking Fauna slightly. "You have to get up, being underneath a burning forest isn't my type of restful nap. Let's get going alright? Besides, I don't feel safe here. I feel like we are being watched."

She stirred lightly, and her eyes fluttered open. Sitting up, Fauna looked about. She looked a bit tired, but nonetheless, she stood up. She dusted herself off and picked up her satchel, shaking the sand off of it.

"Are you thirsty?"

"No."

"All right then, let's get moving. But how are we going to go upstream? That current looks mighty fast, and unless you have your sheikah strength back, we aren't going anywhere far."

"What do you mean?"

"I can't paddle by myself, and I can't carry you flying either." Fauna replied groggily. "Let's get moving, all right?"

"That's what I've been saying when I was trying to wake you up!" Kiara snapped, "But apparently you took your precious time."

"No need to be rude," snapped Fauna. "I was offering to fly you, but never mind." Fauna looked about for some supplies for making a raft. She didn't see much, but looking down at the river where she washed ashore earlier, she smiled. "Time for a climb!"

Fauna darted towards the edge of the climb and stopped. She pulled out the vine she took and unraveled it, tying it around a sturdy rock and lowering herself down. "Come on, let's go!" Kiara sighed, following her. She climbed down slowly, making sure she had her hands squeezing the vine tightly, in fear of losing her foothold and falling down. They eventually made it down to the ground on their own two feet.

"So I guess we'll be leaving that." Kiara replied casually, turning around and looking about, "so why did we climb down here anyway?" Turning back around to face Fauna, she saw the vine recoil back into a bundle, and then Fauna stashed it away in her bag. Fauna turned around.

"What?"

"Oh, I asked why we went down here. And why was that vine recoiling _towards _you?"

"Magic." Fauna said excitedly, her eyes twinkling. "And I saw that large log over there. I was thinking we could use it to float downstream."

"But don't we want to go _upstream_? I mean, I don't want to be falling down another waterfall, if that's where it leads us."

"But I was thinking, maybe it leads to Hyrule? Maybe I can finally observe the plants and herbs they have there, and see if anyone can help us?"

"What are you going to say, you came floating downstream on a long, demanding help for 'burning village'? And then they ask "what village", and then they want to know where it is and where you are from. Aren't you not allowed to say that?"

"Right... but it's better to go away from the smoke and not back into, right? Now let's go, there's no time to waste." Fauna replied, sprinting towards a large log. She stopped before it, and Kiara rushed up behind her, attempting to lift up the log, she crushed her finger. Letting out a loud 'yelp', she took her finger back and started to nurse her wound.

"If you needed the log, why didn't you help me lift it?" Kiara asked angrily, "it's not fun to crush your fingers!"

"Oh, but I was, you see," Fauna explained, levitating the log, "it's much easier to use magic then to charge right into the enemy."

"That's a horrible and foolish quote Fauna, I doubt that anyone else would use that."

_Besides, magic isn't everything,_ Kiara grumbled.

Fauna didn't pay any mind to the sour face Kiara made. Levitating the log, Fauna pulled out her rope and tied it securely on both ends. She found her stuff she had left and shook the sand out of them, and then placed them in her bag. She closed up her satchel and levitated the log to the riverbank. She sat down beside the log and motioned for Kiara to come closer. Using a magic blade, Fauna cut into the log, making it look like a canoe covered in bark. Using the insides, she made four paddles. She placed two at the bottom, her bag near the front of the 'canoe', and pushed it a little bit into the water. She unraveled the vine and placed it beside her bag, and then carefully walked in.

"Come on, let's get a move on, after all, it was you who woke me up."

"Sheesh, I did it because I didn't feel safe remember!" Kiara grumbled, stepping into the boat and sitting down. She took one of the paddles and Fauna took the other.

"Now, off we go!"

* * *

Chad let himself get carried away with the river. He didn't use much energy, unless he was dodging rocks and branches in the water. Other than that, he lazily watched everything go by. But in his head, everything was a flurry.

_What was taking Kiara so long? What happened? Did she find Fauna? Was Fauna fine? Did something happen to Fauna? Did they get captured? If they were captured, who did it and were they being held captive? Where were they now? And what were they thinking?_

Chad popped out of his thoughts as the water brought his head underwater. He struggled to get to the top, and was horrified when he found out he was underground. He pushed his way, but air was running out fast. In a moment, his head came out, and he took in a big breath of air. He better pay attention if he wanted to make it out alive. He continued down the river, watching out for logs, branches, and other things that might snatch him up. He swam to a small island and stood up. The water continued on for a few moments before it narrowed down. In the distance, he could hear the roaring of a waterfall. He looked around for signs of Kiara and Fauna, but he didn't see anything. He would have to get on the riverbank to see if they had landed there. He jumped back in and swam down the river until he came to the riverbank. He swam ashore and stood up, soaked down to the bone.

He took off his shirt and squeezed it out. He didn't see any signs of the girls, so he was figuring that they might have been washed down the waterfall. But they couldn't survive that, so they must have either washed up further down, or further up. He walked along the shoreline and looked about for a sign or object. Apparently, the only thing he found was one place where someone washed up, and footprints along the sand. They seemed about the size of Fauna's, but he wasn't quite sure. He continued walking up and down until a long trail of footprints could be seen behind him. He stopped.

"Maybe they went down the waterfall in a raft. I better make my own and try to catch up, or save them - if that's what it's coming too." Chad started to gather some of the branches scattered all around the beach until he had a large bundle. Then he pulled some vines and used it to tie everything together. He pushed mud into the cracks and let it dry, applying more and more. He flipped it over and repeated the process until it looked like a long brown square. He tied some vines to the end of a stick to make a paddle and pushed mud into the gaps. He tied the two together and then strapped it to his back. The raft wouldn't survive falling down a waterfall. Going to the edge, he saw that there was a way to climb down. He untied the raft and slowly lowered it down to the sand below, and then tied the other end to a rock. He climbed down slowly.

Suddenly, the vine tensed up and snagged onto a sharp rock. Chad gulped. If he moved too much, it would eventually rip the vine and he would fall. If he didn't, eventually the vine wouldn't hold him anymore, and he'd fall. Taking his chances, he slowly climbed down using the vine and his feet. _Snap_. The vine broke in two, and Chad fell down. He saw the water and the land approaching quickly. Taking in a sharp breath, he closed his eyes. He fell through something prickly. Opening his eyes, he found himself up in the tree not far from the raft, waterfall, and sand. He jumped out and brushed himself off, then he walked over to the water and splashed himself lightly.

"So I survived after all. Magic does have benefits, but I better get used to these sudden transportation spells." Chad muttered, walking up to his raft. He picked it up and placed it beside the water and pushed it in. It floated, and he softly crept onto it and pulled out the makeshift paddle.

He dipped it into the water and set off down the stream.

_Hopefully, I'll find Fauna and Kiara..._

* * *

**Goal achieved! 6,000 words used!**

**Edit (4/21/15): Well, microsoft word for the win as my spell check. I don't trust the things online any more...**

**Longer than the last one, was it not? I know, it's not much of a cliffhanger, but it was good (right?). Anyways, this took a bit of thinking, and now that I think about it, seems a bit filler-like. So I'll try to make something more interesting (like a water battle - or ending their water journey - or getting lost or something). Well I'm relieved I've got time to take a break, because I'm going to need a week to get my ideas back (don't worry, it won't be too long. It'll be the week in between the updates).**

**Well I hope you enjoyed everything. If you left a favorite or you are following this story, please leave a review. Chapter twenty isn't too far ahead (*squeal*) and I'm so excited that MLP Season 5 went well. Now remember, I also need help with a MLP fanfiction I'm writing, so I need to find out my ponysona's name! Vote for it on my profile page! And don't forget, PM if you have any questions about the story!  
**

**Did you find any errors? If not, Microsoft Word for the win (spelling wise)!**

** I saw both of the episodes, and I really can't wait to begin writing my MLP fanfiction. Besides that, I have a few ideas on my page, so you can check that out (page = profile page). Well, that's about it. I hope you enjoyed it, and I'll see you later (or in the next chapter, whichever comes first)!**

**_Yours truly,_**

**AuthorPen11**


	20. Welcome to Hyrule

**Now that the last chapter is finished, I will be going into detail about the beginning of their journey. It won't take too long to get them where I want them, so it might take a long chapter to explain everything as it arrives. There will be more information about Topaz, and let's see if Kiara can come back and remember anything (because Topaz was speaking when Fauna found her - er, them. And I know it is extremely late, but Happy Easter! But before I start the chapter...**

**Legendoffun -** _I know, I still have errors in my chapters, but I'm getting better...right? I just have a problem with homonyms (nom-y nom, noms...). Oh yes, Hyrule eventually right? :P There's a good chance they'll meet all three...and I was figuring that this was a bit of post-SS...I did mention it like a few chapters after the first few chapters, but it wasn't too far off from what I remember. Yeah, you might -could -... -probably -have forgotten..._

**Libby8980 -** _Yep, Kiara is suffering from amnesia...I guess you could say that, but it isn't serious. She'll remember things eventually, with the help of Topaz, Fauna, and Chad, of course. Yeah, it'll be a problem if she doesn't remember any of these things. Especially if she runs into that group that kidnapped her...Hopefully Chad will catch up to them, because they need some serious help. And I'm glad you are looking forward to the next chapter, it is really exciting to hear that._

* * *

**Chapter 20**

The boat drifted down the stream as Fauna and Kiara rested. No matter how many times Fauna asked 'Kiara' if she remembered the village, she would simply reply with "oh, sorry", "I'm sorry" or "I don't remember any of that". Eventually, Fauna gave up.

"So, you don't remember anything, do you Kiara?" Fauna asked, a long, frustrated sigh escaping.

"I'm sorry-"

"No, it doesn't matter." Fauna interrupted, "you don't need to say you're sorry."

A long silence followed before Fauna took up the oars and began paddling again. Kiara began to get uncomfortable. She wasn't sure what it was, but she had a nagging feeling that they weren't alone - and they were being watched. Ignoring the feeling, she huffed and decided to try to take her mind off of things. Glancing about, Kiara started to observe their surroundings, curious to see if she could find what was watching her - and Fauna.

"How long do you think it'll be before we can get back on shore, I'm feeling cramped." Kiara whined. Fauna sighed.

"Listen, I don't think it would be safe to stop on either side. I just don't feel very safe. Maybe a little further and then I'll think about it."

And they went a little further. Every time Kiara asked, she got the same answer. She was starting to get nervous. Her mind wouldn't stop jumping, and even the rocking of the 'canoe' scared the wits out of her. A sweat drop dripped down her forehead. She wasn't quite sure what it was, but she didn't like it. Nervously, Kiara scratched her neck. But as her hand reached to wipe the sweat drop away from her forehead, she heard something. _Zip!  
_Kiara left out a scream when she saw something fly a few inches away from her hand. Quickly, she dunked, clutching the sides of the boat. The next few moments flew by in an instant, Kiara didn't even know what happened. But what she realized was there was a hole in the boat, and a few seconds later it capsized.

The cold water rushed to greet Kiara, surprising her greatly. She flailed in the water for a few moments, before resurfacing. She gasped for air, and glanced about to see where Fauna was. She couldn't find her. She dove back into the chilly water and searched around. In the water, she saw Fauna down underneath, starting to get swept away by the current. Kiara didn't even notice the vine snagged around her foot. What was worse, was that she looked unconscious. Swiftly swimming up for more oxygen, Kiara paddled a few feet ahead of Fauna and dived. The first thing she felt was the current dragging her slowly. As she tried to swim farther and farther away from it, Fauna sailed right beside her. Kiara gripped her shoulder and tried to heave her above water, but she was still very weak from her fever. As the last bit of oxygen leaked away, Kiara felt lightheaded and dizzy. She felt her body start to go heavy and limp. Darkness started to surround her. As it began to envelop her, she saw something in the water coming towards her.

* * *

Chad paddled faster as a long familiar yell sounded. _Kiara? _Chad tried going faster and faster towards the source, but he wasn't doing as well. His raft was more like a scrap of junk tied together than a swift, sturdy canoe. Giving up Chad used a magic blast to push him faster towards the source. When he arrived, he quickly surveyed his surroundings and dunked. He saw the darts coming out of the nearby forest. The boat ahead was starting to tip, and it had already been punctured. He saw Fauna go limp and fall into the water. His heart beat faster as he tried to think of something to do. The boat flipped over and he could have sworn that he skipped a beat. He could feel his pulse thumping beneath his skin and sweat drops formed on his brow.

Kiara swam up to the surface, but Fauna wasn't with her.

"Kiara -" He dodged an incoming dart and growled. _I'll take care of this, but she better get Fauna out of the water_. Forming an energy blast in his hands, he tossed it furiously towards the attackers. There was a small explosion, then silence. For a few quick seconds, he could hear the scurrying away of feet. He turned around and looked for Kiara. She hadn't resurfaced. Without a second thought, he dove into the water and looked about. Not far ahead, he saw Kiara struggling to pull Fauna back up. Chad was a bit bewildered at first, having remembered taking the short class of "Saving a Drowning Person While You're in the Water". As he saw closer, he spotted something tangled around Fauna's foot. He swam closer to Kiara and suddenly noticed that she stopped swimming. Chad quickly went up for air and returned. He nearly inhaled water when he notice Kiara close her eyes and let go of Fauna. Swiftly, he grabbed both of them and pulled them to the surface.

...

Chad wasn't sure what time it was, but by the fact that his body was exhausted after the journey, he was sure that it was close to midnight. He successfully hauled the two onshore, along with their boat. He found only Fauna's bag, the rest being lost. He sighed, trying his best to fuel the fire and keep them warm. He tried his best to dry himself out, but his clothes were still damp and clung to his skin miserably. He slumped down beside Kiara and sighed.

_When did all of this go wrong? Why did this happen? Did Nova know this was going to happen? Is this my fault? What do I do know?_

_Hold on Chad. Everything should be fine now, you just need to get Kiara and Fauna back to the village. That minor spell should have them back to normal by morning...but what bothers me is Kiara. Yeah, I know Kiara bothers me! But why couldn't she take Fauna back up to the surface? We learned all of that during the extra class only last week. After all, it was that or...oh never mind. _He thought to himself.

Chad tossed a few more branches inside of the fire and watched the flames lick it up eagerly. A great sigh escaped him, and he laid back against a large stone. The fire danced before him, Fauna and Kiara were finally in a peaceful asleep. Chad tried to think of what had happened all today. The village had been attacked. The forest was burning. Everyone was in a frenzy. He narrowly helped Kiara avoid being killed by that crazy woman. They both ran after Fauna into a burning forest (which he admitted afterwards, "The stupidest thing I've done in my life"). Chad sighed, running his hand through his wet hair. He climbed one of the trees and watched from his post, wandering how he would be able to sort this out, but for now, he had to rest. Chad yawned, drowsiness overcoming his duty to guard the village. Despite his urge to stay awake, he felt a bit sore, and was soon comfortable in the tree, quickly falling asleep.

...

_Thump! _Chad woke up with a start, wondering what could have been that loud noise. He suddenly felt a surge of pain and realized that he fell out of the tree. He muttered something angrily and sat up. They were still there, sound asleep. Chad searched Fauna's bag for something to help them, but instead, all he found was a flower. Sure, it looked rare and pretty, but Chad felt sick every time he looked at it. He put it back and decided to wake up the others. The first thing he did was try to shake Fauna awake. When she didn't budge, he feverishly shook Kiara. She mumbled something, but still didn't awaken. He started to get worried about their welfare. Thankfully, the clothing was dry again, so Chad slipped on a shirt, as the air was getting slightly chilly. He draped the warm clothes over Fauna and Kiara and looked about for some food.

"Minds as well as start foraging." He thought aloud, glancing back at the two, and walking off. He promised to come back as soon as possible, because they were still not safe from harm.

* * *

_Darkness surrounded the area and all she could hear was screaming all around her. She found her home, flickering in the flames, the image of it brought back a cold chilly air. She pushed away from the panicking villagers and escaped to the outlaying pasture. All the horses had been stolen. People searched around for their children, mothers had looks of worry all over their faces. Names were being shouted, sobbed, yelled, and screeched. The sound pained Topaz as she scurried away._

_"I have to get out of here. I have to find the orb. I have to get it to Princess Zelda." She murmured. With a surge of hope, she stumbled to her feet and looked about worriedly. The last thing she wanted was to be followed. As she made a few steps she heard one word flutter away from behind her._

_"Topaz!" The word was like a needle being injected in your neck. It was shocking, and painful. She froze in an instant and turned quickly. She saw by the gate, the last one she suspected to see. Her 'mother' who was taking care of her. The woman who clothed and fed her. She had to go back for her. The woman recognized the panicked look in her face. As Topaz turned to run towards her, she heard her mom call again._

_"Topaz run! Get help! Get the **orb **and run!" She yelled._

_Topaz quivered, her mind starting to get foggy. She was about to dash in and take her away, for the roof behind her was starting to burn faster. Topaz watched in horror as it started skidding toward her._

_"Mom! Run!" Topaz yelled. It was shocking at first, for she never called her mom. She always said 'Ms. Dawn'. But as the roof started to slide down, Topaz felt something prick her. It hurt._

_"Topaz..." Dawn said, tears welling in her eyes. She had noticed the roof too. As it came closer, the last words she said was barely audible. "Topaz, be careful. Remember that the goddesses watch you. May you ever be in their favor… and...Remember Topaz...that I will always love you." There was a dreadful crash, and Dawn was gone. Topaz yelled at that exact moment, but it was no use. Dawn was dead. A painful wave covered Topaz and she sobbed miserably from where she stood. Her knees quaked. It was her fault. If only she had told the town about the visions, the dreams she had. If only she had told Dawn, maybe she would have been safe._

_But no. Topaz was always stubborn. She became more like this especially when the village children teased her. They called her "sand skin" and sometimes called her a thing "unlike a Hylian, the ones Hylia actually watches over". Those didn't sting Topaz. She knew that Dawn wasn't her actual mother, and she remember the stories Dawn would tell her about how she found her. _

_"By the door step you were placed, shining like a Topaz. Your eyes looked fearful, and your wails had woken me up. A woman draped in black had placed you down and rushed off. I saw her. She looked sorrowful and didn't say much. But I heard a few words she said, since they came out in Hylian. 'Take care of her, and don't let him get her'. I hadn't known what she meant, but the fearful look in her eyes told me to watch you every single second I could."_

_The story calmed Topaz down as she turned and fled towards the secret library. She had to get the orb before they came back and took it. She had to get it before it was too late._

* * *

Kiara darted awake, sweat beads covering her forehead. Her hair stuck to her and her breathing was uneven and shaky. As she took in her surroundings, she realized that no one else was there but Fauna. But what had happened? She noticed that whoever it was, they hadn't tied her up, so they must have wanted her to believe she was safe. Her thoughts were interrupted by the snapping of twigs. She stood up and spun around, facing the creature. But to her surprise, it was a boy. He had ruffled dirty blonde hair and orange eyes. He stopped when he noticed her standing there. She locked eyes with him, as if she was in a trance. At first, she couldn't bring herself out of it, but a moment later, she had forced herself to look away. Her cheeks went from pale to crimson within seconds, and the only thing she managed to say was,

"Who are you?"

He froze for a few seconds before just moving ahead towards Fauna, placing down the fruit and tending to the fire.

"You don't recognize me, Kiara?"

_Kiara...Kiara?_

"N-no...I don't remember you."

"Really?" He questioned, looking over his shoulder, "what happened?"

"I-I don't know. But are you working for those people who attacked us?"

"No, I came to find you two."

"Really, well that's probably what they wanted you to say." Although Kiara (or Topaz, as that's who it was at the moment) felt and urge to slap him, she was in no way ready for a fight. She was a bit stiff and sore, and a horrible urge for food overcame her urge. More importantly, he had brought fruit with him. Ignoring the blush on her cheeks, she looked over him. He looked strong, and tough for his age - whatever age he was. Kiara didn't know what was up with her, but she felt a sudden wave of recognition as a name flew from her thoughts to the tip of her tongue.

"You're Link. Aren't you?"

"Excuse me?" He looked at her, greatly offended and peeved.

"I mean, Chad." She stuttered, her cheeks flaring up again, "sorry it's just..."

"No, it's fine." He said, brushing her off. "You really _are _out of your mind." He muttered miserably.

"Pardon?"

"Alright, fire's started." He said, ignoring her. He punctured a fruit and put it over the fire.

"Why would you roast perfectly good fruit?" Kiara questioned, "I know what it is, and it definitely doesn't need to be -" She had picked up the fruit and took a bite out of it. The fruit was horribly bitter and definitely needed to be warmed up. Kiara half choked on and half spat it back out. After a moment of gagging, she got the horrible fruit off her tongue. "-never mind, continue cooking it." He chuckled, making her turn beet red (much to her annoyance). Neither of them noticed that Fauna had awakened. But in a moment, they did.

"Chad? You found us?" She asked, clutching her head miserably, "ugh, what did I do, bang my head on a tree?"

"Not sure, but yeah, found you two getting attacked. Say...?" He lowered his voice so Kiara could hear him, "what's with her? She just called me _Link_. Like what kind of name is that?"

"Don't ask, but she does mention it every now and then." Fauna replied. Chad continued roasting the fruit until he thought it would be good to eat. He took a bite, only to toss the fruit into the fire and jump up, savagely looking for water.

"Hot! Hot! Hot!" He said, his tongue sticking out as he darted to Fauna's bag and pulled out the specimen jars of water. Every last drop went down his throat and he stopped. "Thank goodness." He muttered, getting his composure back, "for clean water."

"Thanks, but I was going to use that for Kiara's wound..." murmured Fauna regrettably.

"Well it can't be helped. And I don't have any food, neither do I think that fruit is any good."

"Maybe for the animals." Fauna said, picking up the rest and stuffing them in her bag. She shook the dust off the clothes and tried to dry them before folding them, and shoving them in her bag.

"Animals? Why would we want to feed the animals?"

"Maybe they can help." Fauna replied, winking. Kiara joined them, trying to comb out a few tangles.

"Kiara, are you feeling any better?" Fauna asked.

"A bit, but my head is fuzzy."

"Well," Chad said, clearing away traces of their camp, "we should get moving and see where that river takes us. I can't paddle up a waterfall, and sitting here is dangerous. Fauna and I will paddle. And when we need some help, Kiara can help."

He prepared the boat, but Fauna kept her bag, insisting that everything in it was precious. Chad merely rolled his eyes and continued patching up the hole. After a bit, it was successfully repaired (secretly using dark magic, since he was starting to get good at it). He pushed it into the water and was happy to see it afloat. He climbed in, helping Fauna and Kiara. They set off down the river. A long silence followed.

As Kiara focused on an object in the water, her mind wandered back off into her dream.

* * *

_Lightning flashed across the sky as a figure rushed away from a burning village. As the lightning flickered across the sky, thunder boomed, and the earth quaked. Tumbling right beneath a great tree, a figure could be heard sobbing. The wind and rain drenched her thoroughly, and her hair was matted down to her neck. Her red hair had been tied in a beautiful braid for a ceremony, but all that happened was an attack on the village, and fire devouring people and the town. She felt exhausted, and her legs felt like a bag of sticks. She could hardly move, and the cold numbed her fingers. But one thing burned in her mind._

_Get the orb and get to Princess Zelda. She would know what to do._

_Lightning illuminated her surroundings and she looked back. The town looked like a large, merry camp fire, but all it did was taunt her. "She's dead now." "No need to worry about her." "You should worry about yourself." "Get the orb or lose it." She bit her lip angrily and turned to her object. A tall, dark building known as the library was before her. It hung back behind some large trees. She ran up to the door and tried to turn the knob, but it wouldn't budge. It was locked. She went to the usual hiding spot of the tree but faltered when she spotted the lightning narrowly miss the library. The thunder shook the air and she faltered, nearly falling into a puddle of mud. She reached into the lowest tree branch and pulled out a large, rusty looking key. She hurried to the door and pushed it in and turned the knob. It wouldn't budge. She pushed and pushed. She heard hooves behind her and yelling. She heard the wailing and screaming of women behind her. She tried to push the door. Lightning flashed and she noticed her shadow was different. No, it was sickly and thin, but there were two shadows. She swallowed dryly and turned. _

_"No..." she muttered, seeing two beings that had haunted her nightmares for so long._

_"After so long, our chase is over." Cackled the first, "who thought it would be this easy?"_

_"Never dreamed of it. But let's get rid of her. After all, she is only useless to us." The second laughed, pulling out a blade, stained with rust and frost. It crept towards her, its glaring blue eyes glowing in the dark. "Ah, now hold still." It muttered. Topaz screamed, as she felt the blade hit its mark. The world became fuzzy and she felt her body saw before falling into the mud._

_"Much easier than I thought..."muttered the first. Turning to blast the door open. Topaz felt pain surge through her body, and she felt lightheaded. But at the same time, she felt like she was glowing. The two stopped and turned, their eyes going wide._

_"No...It will not be that easy..." Topaz heard herself say. She felt draped in light and her wound stopped burning. The lightheaded feeling didn't go away though. "I'll teach you to mess with me!" She roared._

* * *

Worriedly, Fauna shook Kiara, getting more and more frightened as she sat there, a sad look in her eyes. What troubled Fauna even more was the tears that slipped into her eyes, why were they there?

"Kiara? Kiara what's wrong?" Fauna asked, Kiara's breathing getting faster and more rigid.

She seemed to be in a trance, but no matter how many times Fauna shook Kiara, she wouldn't snap out of it.

"Please...Kiara wake up!" Fauna whispered, shaking her roughly. At the last shake, Kiara snapped out of her trance and took in a sharp breath. She looked dizzy, and her eyes had a faraway look.

"Thank goodness, are you alright?" Fauna asked, "You had me worried."

She stood still for a moment before shaking herself.

"I-I'm...fine?" She said aloud, touching her face. "Oh thank Hylia..." she murmured, letting out a relieved sigh.

"Kiara...how long has this been happening to you?"

She turned to face Fauna. Her eyes looked downcast and sad.

"I've been having these dreams since the time at the spring. Well, before that."

"Oh, what happens?"

Kiara looked away. "I see...I see myself somewhere...distant, it's a faded memory. I see a burning village..."

Chad stopped paddling. "Our village?"

"No...My village. I remember now." Kiara looked excited.

"Remember what?" Fauna asked, glancing at Kiara.

"I remember that my name is..." she groaned as if she was hit but a sharp pain, clutching her head. After a minute she stopped. "I'm sorry...it's gone now."

Fauna sighed, "It's alright. I'm glad I awoke you, we are about to hit some rough waters." They all grabbed the oars and braced themselves for impact. Once they hit the current, they worked together to avoid getting hit by rocks and scraping the bottom of the boat against sandbars. After a moment of rough water, they escaped the rough water. Before them, a bright tunnel was ahead.

"What's over there?" Kiara asked. None of them could answer. The one thing they knew was that they were hungry and it met out of that miserable place. They paddled faster and faster until they got in a swift current. They sailed quicker and faster before it was merely a stone's throw away. They couldn't make out anything beyond it, but it felt warm, and strange.

"It's just up ahead now." Chad announced, paddling faster and faster. Finally, they came out into a clear river. The water glittered beautifully, and the birds darted about lively. The sun was high up in the sky and looking behind them, they saw that there was no tunnel behind them. Instead, they saw the emblem of the sheikah in stone.

"Did we...just come from there?" Fauna gasped, looking from behind her to all around.

"Yeah...I think we did. So that's how they conceal our home. Inside that big mountain." Chad pointed out. And he was right. They were sailing smoothly in a river, and behind them, a tall, towering mountain. They all gasped in amazement.

"Uh, guys," Fauna said, looking about, "I think I know where we are know."

Chad and Kiara glanced at her confusedly.

"Where?" Chad questioned.

"Chad, Kiara...welcome to Hyrule." Fauna murmured, her voice barely audible. The sun glimmered overhead and they looked about examining their glorious surroundings. It felt so good to be in the sun for the others. But to 'Kiara'...it felt like home...

* * *

**Dun, dun dun! Welcome to Hyrule! Yes, we are here! And Kiara has successfully mentioned 'Link' again! By the way Chad, don't insult him.**

**"Like what kind of name is that?" (Quoting Chad from earlier). So, that should explain how they hid in such a huge land. Well, sort of explain. Anyways, we are on to a great start and I'm glad to see that it is successfully progressing along nicely. But where to next? What is going on in Kiara/Topaz's dream? When will they meet Impa? And Link? And Zelda? And...-well we will answer these eventually, but now isn't the chapter. Review! Favorite! Follow! Rejoice! (Alright, you can 'rejoice' if ya want - you know, 'cause we arrived in Hyrule -Legendoffun...- and all). So, we are on the verge of beginning our journey. It's nice isn't it, to hear that? Ah, but how long should that take? Probably the next two chapters and a half, but that's only the beginning...I have some twists that I'd like to add to give more character to Topaz.**

**Something off-topic, but I'll be beginning my MLP fanfiction next month. It won't have a regular update time, but I'll make sure that it is running smoothly and gets updated regularly like this one. In the mean time, I hope you are looking forward to the next chapter of this story. And next chapter (Chapter 21) I will rename this story. But don't worry, it'll be relevant to the story plot line. But anyways, I hope you've enjoyed the chapter and don't be afraid to tell your friends/PM-Buddies about this story! And I hope to see more reviews, follows, rejoicing, favorite, etc., and I hope you enjoyed this chapter!**

**_Yours truly,_**

**_AuthorPen11_**


	21. A New Enemy?

**Long time no see...just kidding! Well anyways, it has been a busy week for me and I've really been missing out on sleep. Guess it can't be helped...I'll make this author's note and such as short as possible, so if you don't care about reading this, go ahead and skip.**

**As for others...**

**Legendoffun - **_Yep, I'm still riddled with errors, but I promise to search over it more than just leaving it to go. But don't worry. It isn't fresh off the press (after all, that's against the rules)... Yeah, and we are having some fun in the group... and I'm sure you met 'made it into Hyrule' and not 'mad' :P As for 'cliffies', I needed to leave it for some dramatic effect or I'm sure I'd head straight into the story and into a load of writer's block...no thanks. Well, somehow it is easier to find errors in other people's fanfictions, but so hard to find it in my own...especially since I'm always overlooking it. And my MLP story is in progress, so this'll be just great. Maybe it'll be updated every other Thursday? Oh, notice anything new?_

* * *

**Chapter 21**

After getting ashore by the small lake they came from, Fauna dropped down, exhausted. The long rowing tired out her arms and she couldn't wait until it was dark. It was enough that she hadn't gotten much sleep, but it was worse when she heard Chad and Kiara - who wasn't acting like herself - bickering about various topics. As the sun began to set, Fauna was to tired to stop their fighting. Despite their annoying grumbling, she turned over. But she wasn't comfortable right there. So she rolled over on the grass again, found a comfortable spot, and finally fell asleep.

...

The following morning, Fauna woke up late. At first she was confused by the patterns of light, but soon, the events of the following days rushed back to her. The memories seemed really painful, and at first, Fauna couldn't move. But soon she shook off the feeling. She was just acting paranoid...right? Sitting up, she groaned as a piercing pain rapidly flew through her body. For another night in a row, she had slept in an uncomfortable position, resulting in aches and pain in the morning.

She stood up and stretched, ignoring the 'pins and needles' feeling in her body. She looked about and noticed that the rest were both asleep. _For the better_, Fauna thought. She strolled over to her bag and searched through the contents, looking for one thing in particular. After a quick search, she pulled out the flower, which she affectionately called 'Gaia's Blossom'. She carefully took it out of the jar and searched about for something more spacious to place it in. After a quick search, she was surprised to find an empty bottle.

_Wow, they sure don't care about dropping helpful things every now in then...but this is just sad. _Fauna thought, shaking her head. She hated seeing waste and trash sitting around in such beautiful landscapes and by homes. But she couldn't do it herself - trying to keep the land clean. Fauna filled the bottle halfway with dirt and placed the plant in it. With the other empty jar, she filled it with water and watered the plant. It looked a bit withered, which worried her.

_Could it possibly be dying? _Fauna dismissed the thought and turned away._ No._ It probably shouldn't have been placed in a _jar_, after all, would you like to be left in a jar or bottle? It would have been better planted in the rich Hyrule ground, but Fauna didn't want to leave it behind. After all, the person who set the forest on fire was looking for it. She wouldn't leave it for it to be taken as easily as that.

* * *

_It really is dark in here...where am I? All I hear is a voice calling my name. It won't stop, neither will it go away. I can't shake a feeling that I'm somewhere in between my mind and the real world. I can't figure out a way to get out of here...it's starting to get chilly in here. No. Cold. Really cold. It is starting to hurt, what is it? What's going on?! Help me!  
_

Kiara darted awake, sweat drops dripping down her forehead. She wiped it away and tried her best to calm down. Her breathing was fast and uneven, and she had a sick feeling in her gut. What ever that short vision was about, she didn't like it. Not one rupee.

"Are you alright?" The question was simple, but obviously, whoever it was, was concerned. Kiara shook her head and glanced about. _Where was she? _She turned and faced the speaker. She gasped.

"Y-you? Is that...you?" She clutched her head, a horrible throbbing feeling coming back, "ugh...this is as bad as the first time." She muttered.

"Uhm, Kiara? Are you alright?" Chad asked, clearly confused. "You know you have met me before. And I don't like to be the end of a prank."

"A prank? Why would I be pranking you? I don't even know who you are? You look nothing like..." She stopped, a look of confusion plastered on her face. "Link...who in Hyrule is that?"

Chad chuckled. "I was hoping you would tell me. Recently you kept mistaking me with that...stupid, er, _ridiculous_ name."

"I was? OH! Of course... Topaz. So that's what she meant by 'mistake'."

"Topaz? Uhm, Kiara, first you don't recognize me, then you call me 'Link', and now you are talking about this girl named Topaz? Would you mind if I asked you what was going on?"

Kiara laughed nervously. "I still haven't caught your name."

Chad groaned and face palmed. "Alright...It's C-h-a-d. Chad...really? What did you do, hit your head?"

"Probably." Kiara and Chad jumped, only to turn around and face Fauna. She had obviously been up earlier, from the clean clothes and hair to the packed and ready satchel she had tied to her waist. "I'm sure of it now. Kiara's suffering from something close to amnesia."

"Ooh..." Chad said. "Is there something we can do?"

"I'm not sure. She could be partially suffering or completely. Maybe if she remembers a few lessons from training, it could prove that she's either a natural or is only partially suffering." Fauna replied, packing up their things.

"Oh, maybe after we clear up are things. In the meantime, where should we leave the boat?"

"Why are we leaving the boat?" Kiara asked

"Well, we're obviously not going to always find a stream to row down by, so we'll have to walk. Remember our main objective?"

"And what was that again?"

Fauna rolled her eyes and sighed. "We are headed to Hyrule castle for help. We need to find Impa and alert her about the village and get some help. There are probably many people sick and wounded because of this...mess. We were only lucky we weren't hurt. But we can't travel like this. We will need some provisions, and obviously, we can't run about saying we are sheikah and we live over the side of the mountain. That's exactly against the rules. Anyways, do any of you have some disguises or something?"

Chad searched himself quickly. "No. Maybe I can get something from a village."

"_If_ there's a village nearby - that is. We don't know the layout of Hyrule...that is, unless you all were paying attention in 'The World Around Us (better known as geography)' class." Fauna said regretfully, "because I wasn't paying attention at all."

Chad sighed. "I don't think I noticed anything important, but I do remember that Hyrule Castle should be on the horizon." He immediately darted away and climbed a tree, leaving the two alone for a moment.

Finding this as a perfect opportunity to find out what was happening, Fauna turned and faced Kiara. "Uhm, Kiara? Can I ask you something?" Fauna said, looking down for a moment at her boots, before glancing up again at her.

"Hmm, yeah? Sure..." Kiara trailed, looking at the glimmering water.

"I just wanted to ask you...who is Topaz? Have _we_ met her before?" Fauna asked.

"Topaz? Oh, she's a...hylian...I think. I'm not sure if I'm right though. She never exactly answered my question, and if she did, she was a bit hesitant. No, I don't think you've actually met _her_...just her in _my_ body."

"In your...what?" Fauna said loudly, obviously surprised and horrified. But before she could ask anything else-

"Hey! Girls, you can stop chatting and bickering, I see Hyrule Castle. And it's closer than I thought. Distant. But closer." Chad slid down the tree trunk. "It should take less than a fortnight to be there and back again."

"Oh - uhm, thanks Chad. I guess we should be going." Fauna said, leaving Kiara alone. She wasn't quite expecting to hear that some girl was sharing a body with Kiara.

_I want to know if it is permanent, or temporary. But I don't want to alarm Chad. Who knows how bad that might make it... How long has it been like this? Is the girl a spirit, or did she just get cast out of her body? _A bunch of questions bothered Fauna as they trudged away from their campsite and out to the top of a hill. In a moment, Kiara caught up with them. The hill started to become steep halfway up. As Fauna thought about her questions, Chad began whistling, finding it a beautiful day. A light breeze ruffled his hair and he was clearly glad to be out in the air.

Kiara, on the other hand, was beginning to get a little skeptical herself.

_'Can Topaz really be trusted? Am I suffering from this "amnesia" completely or partly? If it is partly, will I ever get my memories back? And how?' _Kiara continued walking behind the group, every now and then stopping and sucking in a big gulp of air. She sighed. '_Would things every be normal again?'_, She wondered.

* * *

They continued upwards until they came to the top of the hill. There, they all stopped and rested. By this time, the sun was high up in the sky. Chad settled down in a short patch of grass and examined their surroundings. For a bit, the wide fields would continue. Then there was a couple of villages. After that, some more open fields and then a vast forest. After that, there would be more open fields, a few more villages, a rocky path or two, a wide, grassy field again, and then Hyrule Castle. Chad was confident that they would make it to Hyrule Castle within a week. But then doubt began to creep inside.

_'Would they make it to Hyrule Castle, or would they die trying? Who would they encounter? Would Impa even be there? Would they be allowed in the castle? Could such a crazy feat as this even work? Would everyone hang on back at home, or would they bring help too late?' _These plagued his mind constantly, and he couldn't shake off the feeling. But what worried him the most was this. '_Where was Nova? What had she meant with her last words? Who was she going to, and what did they want? Would he really be able to control his dark magic? How did he get it? From someone else? Someone related to him? _And the last just made him go off into a frenzy..._Was Zack even his brother? If not, who was his real family? Were they still alive? Or had they perished, all except him? And if they did, how did he escape? He must have been too young to remember.'_

"Chad!" A voice snapped in his ear. He left his thoughts and turned to the speaker.

"Huh? What?!" He questioned, looking over his shoulder at a very irritated Kiara.

"What? Fauna and I were discussing our plans about that village not far away. If you'd even _care _to join us in our conversation, we would be happy to hear your opinions."

"Opinions or _suggestions_?" He asked

"Either is fine." Kiara hissed, obviously mad. "Anyways, we can send one of us into the village and buy some bandages, wraps, or disguises."

"Bandages? None of us is seriously wounded. And didn't we agree that _I_ was going into the first village for supplies and disguises?"

"Well, you didn't give any of us a chance to plan anything out, so it doesn't count." Kiara pointed out, "anyways, Fauna says we could use the bandages to cover our faces."

"Why again?"

"Doofus, I'm not sure if you've noticed, but we have these tattoos on our faces that basically scream our identities. We need to cover them, and the ones on our arms and legs, silly." Kiara remarked dryly.

"Right..." Chad trailed, "kind of forgot about that."

Kiara snorted, turning away. "You were saying Fauna?"

"Oh, glad you could join us Chad." She received a quick glare from Kiara, so she continued on with the current conversation, "we need to cover our faces, skin, nearly everything. It couldn't hurt to find some satchels for you two either, but I didn't exactly grab any rupees on my way out. And I totally oppose to stealing." Kiara kept silent for a moment, staring off into space.

"Aw, come on Fauna!" Chad groaned, "how else are we supposed to get it? Begging? You wish...but I don't." He mumbled at the last second.

"I know, but maybe we could try to get a few spare jobs quickly."

"But that contradicts what we chatted about earlier!" Kiara replied, finally joining in, "we can't go in looking like," she raised her hand above her head and swept it down in one swift motion, "this!" The motion meant that they couldn't go, since they didn't have any scraps of clothes, and their sheikah tattoos were showing.

"I know...but maybe if we plaster some mud on our faces -"

"And look like dirty hooligans or street rats? No thank you."

"Kiara, you should be open to suggestions." Chad reproached

"Pardon, but I didn't ask for your opinion!" Kiara yelled, glaring at him furiously.

"If I recall earlier, you said either was fine-"

"Forget what I said!"

"Alright! Sheesh..."

Neither of the three sheikah had let down their guard until that moment. Now they were in a heated debate - ahem, argument - and hadn't noticed someone slowly approaching from afar. Slowly, they made their way up from behind Kiara until they were right beside her. Then they jumped into the middle of their circle.

Nearly all of the sheikah 'students' suffered from a heart attack. Fauna covered her mouth to cut off her ear piercing shriek. Chad's eyes grew wide, and Kiara sucked in a breath - and a nearby fly. She immediately started choking after that. A few seconds later it was out, the poor thing dead. But the awkward silence continued. A minute later, they all snapped out of their trance.

"Who are you?" Chad asked.

The kid simply shrugged. He was a boy with silver-blonde hair and blue eyes. On his back he had a short sword with a white blade, a black bow, and a quiver full of silver arrows. A satchel was strapped to his back and he wore a silver-grey tunic, with a brown belt. He had dusty black boots. What interested them the most, was that he didn't have pointy ears, so he was probably a human.

"Mercury. It's Mercury. But the important question is...who are you?" He replied, his blue eyes darting among the crowd. His eyes rested on Kiara. Involuntarily, she blushed when his eyes locked onto hers. He was about Chad's height and age, and his eyes flashed with curiosity.

"It's none of your business." Chad snapped, standing up and glaring at Mercury. Mercury only grinned in reply.

"Why do you look so weird?" He asked, mainly directing his question towards Chad. Chad's face flushed.

"It's none of your business," he snapped, becoming irritated. "I told you the first time."

Mercury rolled backwards and grinned. "I've taken on boys older than you, and every time I've gotten the information I wanted out. So if you'll kindly choose the easy way..." Chad pulled out of his back pocket a throwing star and threw it directly at the boy. In the flick of a second, it was caught in between two fingers from the other boy's hand. He caught it a few inches away from his face, smirking.

"Oh well. Thanks for the souvenir." He chuckled, pushing it into one of his small satchels attached to his belt. He took out a grey, steel short sword. "The hard way it is."

Mercury front flipped and planted his feet on Chad's chest, knocking him over. Chad rolled out of the way before he was pinned down by the kid and jumped backwards, landing in a tree. "Care to join?" Chad questioned sarcastically towards the girls. The only one who reacted was Fauna, who spun around and pulled Kiara out of the way. Then she ran back towards the battle. Closing her eyes, she tried concentrating on a plan. Mercury was as swift as he was fast. He dashed after Chad in a moment, copying his moves. Easily he dodged Chad's attacks and landed a few kicks on Chad, but none of them were fatal. Pretty soon, Chad and Mercury were even, both panting and trying to catch their breath.

"I've never fought someone this good."

"Never had to fight someone this determined..." Mercury paused, before a smile flickered across his face, "and this sloppy." Chad scowled, darting at Mercury in anger. It was just what Mercury needed to bring him down. He jumped over Chad, twirled around in midair, put away his dagger, and shoved Chad smack into a tree branch. Mercury landed on one foot, back flipped, and stood where he was. His blue eyes widened, as if something had struck him, though nothing did. But he leaps just in the nick of time to avoid Fauna's blast. He turned and smirked.

"Now what do we have here?" He said, grinning. Fauna huffed.

"Leave my friend alone." She glowered at him. Mercury merely laughed.

"What could a girl do against me? Your 'boyfriend' was terrible enough -" A well aimed magic blast launched Mercury across the field, and this time he didn't land on his two feet. He rolled a few times and groaned. Fauna's eyes widened, and she shook herself to get out of a trance. _Was that dark magic? _She shook her head, figuring her senses must have been off the charts that day. She turned and faced Chad, who smirked.

"Never turn your back to your _true _enemy." He hissed towards Mercury, who jumped up and disappeared. "Say, where's Kiara?" It dawned upon Fauna that she didn't even bother to watch her, and she might have gotten frightened and run off. Now Fauna was starting to get worried. Her throat felt dry and she swallowed. A shower of fear crept over her, but she tried her best to hide it. She had turned around and discovered Kiara _and_ Mercury missing. That could only mean one thing.

"Mercury must have taken Kiara!" Fauna blurted out, panicking. "How could I have been so foolish?"

"That little..." Chad groaned, "come on, let's go. Split up, and if he tries to make an imposter of me, ask me one question. The trick is, I won't say anything, but will jump over you and attempt to sweep kick you. You have to trip, and then we know we are still 'ourselves'."

"Alright, meet you there. Though your imposter plan is pretty long..." Fauna replied, darting off. After running a few feet, Fauna began to worry about Kiara. _I just hope she can fend for herself until we get there..._ Chad dashed off in the opposite direction as Fauna rolled down the hill, headed for the village. _Hang on Kiara..._

* * *

It only took a few seconds before Kiara noticed what happened. At first, she was just watching the battle in confusion. Next, she had been taken by that kid - Mercury, that's what his name was. He had grabbed her and disappeared in a flash, obviously something to do with magic. The next moment, Kiara tumbled into some mud.

"Ouch!" Kiara exclaimed, snapping out of a trance. "What's going on here?"

"Just a little bribe." He replied, dusting himself off.

"Bribe?"

"You tell your friends to back off, and you can go back. If not, you're coming with me." His smirk disappeared and became a scowl.

"W-who are you? What do you want?"

Mercury coughed to get her attention.

"Look, I already told you who I am. And I can't answer your second question."

"Answer me." Kiara hissed, standing up and wiping mud off her pants and onto her hands. "What do you want with me?"

_'Tsk tsk'... _He muttered, obviously making sure he said it loud enough so she could hear it. He turned and faced her, a smug look on his face "You don't understand, don't you? You're that girl they're looking for...Kiara, right?"

"H-how do you know my name? I never told you that!" Kiara shouted, backing up against the cave wall. Mercury turned his back to her and snorted.

"You've run into them before. In fact, if it wasn't for your friend out there, I'm sure _Hetia_ would have dealt with you." He sighed, "good thing she didn't, or my job would have been pointless."

"Hetia? Who?"

Mercury growled, obviously irritated. "Are you telling me you've _never_ met her? By Hylia...I must have picked up a fool." He grumbled, kicking a stone into the cave walls. "Ugh...I knew he was setting me up when he sent me..."

"Setting you up? Who?"

"Would you stop saying 'who'!" He snapped, turning around quickly. There was a blue blaze in his eyes, and his hair stood up on ends. "No matter," he mumbled, the fire in his eyes disappearing, "I'll take you there and see what they have to say about you."

"You can't take me! My friends will find you and rescue me!"

"My dear princess in distress..." Mercury said sarcastically, whirling around again, "they can't find you _here_. You're sitting in parallel space. Part of my magical abilities, a great touch up I'd say. Basically, you're sitting in a part of a magical world invisible to others, so everything you say or do won't really matter. They can't hear you. And once we're out, I'll be sure to snatch you away quick."

"W-what, wait..." Kiara said, stumbling. Oddly enough, instead of hitting the floor, she levitated above it by a few inches and started to float upwards. "Huh, that's odd. But you didn't just take an ordinary girl!" Kiara felt herself shout. She backed away and fired a magic blast at him. She was quite astonished herself when she saw the magical energy fly away from her fingertips. But Mercury didn't care. He caught it in the palm of his hand and crushed it into microscopic particles.

"Uh uh uh, my magical world, my rules." He said, smiling. Kiara growled. He jumped up and moved towards her. "So when you're in my world..." he started inching towards her.

_Crack! _It was sickening, and in a second, Kiara felt herself tumble into darkness. _Thud! _The next moment, she was wide awake, on the ground underneath a tree.

"Kiara!" She heard behind her, and Fauna ran beside her. "Glad you're safe." Kiara moaned, clutching her head, a throbbing headache bothering her the instant she came too. She slowly stood up, and grabbed Fauna's arm for her knees started to buckle. She felt a bit weak, but that was all. Looking around, she noticed Chad was in battle with Mercury again.

"Huh, what happened?"

"Mercury snatched you and took off. Luckily, I found his magic trail. Apparently, we aren't just dealing with a kid with great reflexes..." she mumbled, her voice barely audible about the fighting boys. "Let's get out of here."

"What about Chad?" Kiara asked, greatly concerned.

"We made a rendezvous point not far from here. Let's go!" Fauna declared, grabbing Kiara by the arm and running. As Kiara looked over her shoulder, she noticed something glittering around Mercury's neck. All she noticed at first was a small piece of metal, but a moment later, she saw it. A small rainbow feather amulet...where had she seen that before?

* * *

**Dun dun dun..****.! Well, a great cliffhanger, but do you recognize it? I do...'cause, you know I'm writing the story so I kind of have too... A cheap joke I wrote was 'not one rupee' instead of 'not one bit'. See what I did there? Rupee = LoZ. Bit = MLP (for those who are MLP fans...). So anyways, I hope you enjoyed my chapter, but before I go, please leave a review and your opinions.  
**

**"Should I rewrite the first chapter or leave 'em?"**

**"What are your thoughts about Mercury?" Surely you aren't shipping him with anyone...(because I'm kind of am... :P)**

**Anyways, I spent enough time writing like this, and I'm glad I got to 4,000 words (not including AN!). See you all later and I hope you enjoyed this installment of 'Sheikah Warriors'! (Warned you about renaming it!)**

**~ _Yours truly,_**

_AuthorPen11_


	22. As If Things Couldn't Get Any Worse

**Happy Memorial Day!**

**Wow, how time has flown and I'm up early to write this once again. It's good to see that the story is going on the right path and the cliffhangers are as good as ever. Anyone remember where she saw the amulet from? I'll give you a hint... Ch. 5 - 9. There's a great chance I mentioned it in those chapters. Well, either wait around for the next update or go back over the chapters, it's your choice. Now for those who haven't reviewed..._please do_. A review is worth a thousand views no matter what is said. Other than that, there's some friendly faces to say 'hi' too.**

**Libby8980 -** _Dun dun dun, no chapters...for the moment. I'm glad you agree that the story is heating up and getting better._

**Legendoffun -** _I tried. It's either my eyes figure everything fits well, or I forget to consult MW. Oh well. Oh, Topaz is still in there, don't worry, she'll have a turn in this chapter...maybe. And not to point it out so much, but I think you met 'SCW' and not 'SPW'. Unless you're a 'Spell Panicking Warrior'. :P_

**Well, finally my other browser 'Chrome' pops up, but I'm writing on Firefox and I'm like "really, ten minutes later you popped up? I clicked you like 10 times!" oh well, ranting doesn't help I presume. A question to be answered in the reviews, which one should I prepare to publish...a Star wars Rebels, My Little Pony, or another Legend of Zelda fanfiction? _There's a poll for this in my profile_! But it will be just as nice to say here in your review. Opinions, opinions, onions, take your time. This is in the Point of View of Kiara until this line appears again.**

* * *

**Chapter 22**

_Where, where, where?! Where have I seen that before? It's on the tip of my tongue, but I just can't remember...perhaps Topaz knows._

_'Say, Topaz, have you seen that before?' 'Hello?' 'Is she mad or something...?'_

_I guess it is no use, she probably is busy or something._

Despite barely being able to catch my breath, Fauna continued dragging me off, and she didn't stop until we got to the outskirts of the village. Finally, she halted to catch a breather or two.

"Sweet Hylia? What's this all about?" I gasped after I caught a whiff of air. "I could barely catch my breath!"

"S-sorry...I just knew we had better get out of there as soon as they started fighting again. Ki-a-ra...are...you...ok...?" Her words started to slow down and I felt woozy. A stabbing pain all over my body made my legs wobble and all my strength suddenly disappear. What's happening..?, I have no idea.

**_..._**

I groaned, realizing that I must have fallen over. I felt stiff, and of course, sick **again**. I wasn't quite sure whether I was really ill or just had a fever. The room I'm in is stifling hot. I flinch, feeling something cold by my leg and attempt to sit up, or say something, but the only thing that comes out is a small groan. That nipping chill comes back again, but I hear footsteps and it disappears.

"_Kiara...Kiara...are you ok_?" The words seem distant, but I have a feeling that it was just the person who entered. But wait a minute, she's probably mistaking me _for _Kiara, because I clearly remember being named Topaz. _Of course! _We switched again! By why I am in so much pain, I have no idea.

"_Kiara...? Kiara _are you alright?" My ears finally start to tune in, but I have a constant throbbing in side, and a terrible headache. And I feel like I just fell into a furnace.

"Huh?" I finally manage to croak. Finally, my eyes focus on the figure standing beside me. Of course, it's Fauna, and she's looking more worried than ever. She looked relieved to see that I was awake. But apparently she didn't know that I was Topaz...in Kiara's body. Oh, how it made me wish I was back in my body, away from all these shenanigans. But here I was, lying down sick in someone else's body.

"Uhh..." I groaned, attempting to sit up but failing, "w-what happened?"

"It's a long story. But, right now I'm glad to know you're feeling better." Fauna replies, settling down beside me. She helps me up and I dust myself off.

"Yeah, but I'm really starting to feel worse."

"I'm sure it must be a spell he cast, it'll wear off."

"No...I feel like something is wrong." _Could it have something to do with me and Kiara? _No, I decided, it could have been a spell, or I hurt myself - er, Kiara somehow.

"I'm sure it's nothing. Do you think you can walk?"

"Yeah," I took a wobbly step, "where are we going?"

"To the village. Chad says we should get the supplies when it is nightfall, which will be in a couple hours." I looked about and noticed that the sun was starting to set. In fact, it would only be a _few_ hours before night settled in.

"To the village?! But what about the discussion we had earlier-"

"I know it's a risk, but we will have the cover of night on our side. Let's just hope they won't realize that something's missing until it's too late. We already are low on supplies, and the fruit I collected is a bit bruised and not very tasty without being cooked - which I'm sure you may recall." Fauna said, giving me a grin in return as I felt color rushing to my cheeks.

"Oh - well - yeah, go figures...let's just...you know, get to the rendezvous point before Chad goes looking for us."

"Great point there. Get it? 'Point'?"

I gave her a bemused look. "Er, point? I don't get the joke unfortunately." I replied shaking my head to get the stupid joke out of my - ugh! - Kiara's head. Following Fauna, I soon drifted back into my own thoughts.

_'Say...its awful quiet up there...where are you Kiara? Is something wrong? Or did you just like, drift off to sleep or something?'_

"Kiara?"

"Huh?" I snapped out of my trance. She was a few steps ahead of me, and I noticed that I had stopped walking. I quickly jogged up to her. "Sorry," I apologized, "I kind of drifted away."

"Kinda obvious there." Fauna muttered, leading me to a small brush of trees not far from the village. We continued to walk for a couple more minutes before we made it there. Fauna had no problem jumping up the tree, and she looked at me curiously when I didn't jump up after her. But I wasn't going to get myself injured since I wasn't Kiara, so I just climbed up - thankfully thanks to practice at my hometown. As soon as we were both on the highest, firmest branch, Fauna gave me a funny look. At first, I thought she was just looking at something in the distance, then I noticed that she was _studying _me.

"Kiara...you seem a little off. Is everything okay? I mean, I'm sorry for the way I kind of – alright, I'm sorry for shouting at you when you told me you were sharing a body with - what's her name? - Topaz, but I didn't mean to upset you or anything. I mean really I was just kind of tired and curious - a mix I would say, and just wasn't expecting to hear something like that. So...you okay?"

I studied her for a moment before looking down at the ground.

"I'm actually...not okay." I said truthfully. "I'm not Kiara anymore. I-I don't even know where she is, which actually seems impossible since we share a connection through some sort of magic telepathy, and I can't sense her presence, and my head aches, and I felt a bit woozy and...And..." I started to sway, and nearly fell off the branch if Fauna hadn't caught and steadied me.

"Whoa, slow down Kiara - no, Topaz?" She said, holding me still, "if it'd make you feel better, we can climb down some."

"N-no. It's not the heights...it's..." My words were lost and instead, I felt a burning in my throat. Before I knew what happened, I had climbed down and threw up by the tree trunk. My head spun, and my thoughts were jumbled and fuzzy. A small groan came from somewhere else before I felt something sharp in my side. It hurt so bad, my legs began to feel like chu jelly. I heard something - someone, yelling..._screaming_! They were screaming in pain and agony. Their yelling was ear piercing, and my eyes began to see the stars - falling. Then the voice got louder. And then I realized who it was. No, it wasn't just me...it was Kiara!

* * *

Fauna was shocked to see Kiara - Topaz! - scramble down so quickly. She hadn't seen anyone around, but then she realized why she darted down so quickly. A sickening retching noise came from below and Fauna nearly gagged. Did she just throw up? Yeah, she did. Something was definitely wrong. Fauna jumped down in time to see Topaz slowly walking back and forth, moaning, with her hands over her ears. At first, she was only mumbling something, just barely audible to Fauna's ears. Then it became clear of what she said as her voice rose from a mumble to a scream.

"_Make it stop! Make it stop!_" Fauna looked about in fear, hoping that no one came this way, or else they would be in trouble - and blow their cover. Then Topaz stumbled and fell. Swiftly, Fauna rushed to her side and stopped her from rolling about madly in the grass. Fauna looked at her. She kept screaming in pain. It was dreadful to watch. Fauna held Topaz still and kept shouting - so she could be heard,

"Topaz please! Shush! What is it?! What's going on?!" After a few seconds, Fauna noticed tears spring into Topaz's eyes and she suddenly went silent. It was obvious that something was wrong with Topaz - and perhaps Kiara. _Very wrong_.

Now that Topaz had stopped squirming, she noticed that scratch marks had appeared on Kiara/Topaz's face. At first, they bled, a few seconds later they clotted, and after that, they were healed. But they remained. Fauna was alarmed at first when it started bleeding, but she was completely confused at how they healed in a split second.

_'What's going on? Topaz needs some serious help, but I can't risk giving us away. I can't leave Topaz by herself either. She'll might start screaming again or something, so Chad better hurry with those supplies! And definitely some fresh, cold water. I'm starting to feel parched.'_

Fauna jumped up and whipped around when she heard footsteps approaching. To her relief, it was Chad. But something was a bit off...

His face was a bit pale, but he didn't look injured. One look at 'Kiara' and he blurted out,

"Sweet Naryu! What in the world was that all about?"

Fauna glared, shoved him, and quickly knocked him out with some magic. She tied his arms and legs and waited. A few moments later, running up came Chad **again**. Fauna narrowed her eyes.

"Chad..."

"What in the world was that?" He asked. Fauna knocked him out too and tied him up.

"Sorry real Chad, but for the moment, it's best that I don't trust _neither _of you." Fauna muttered.

...**Some time later**...

"I can't believe you just punched me in the face." Chad grumbled, rubbing his jaw, "that hurt you know!"

"Sorry, but at the time I figured that you would have a doppelganger following you. And when _another _you approached, I decided it would be better to knock both of you out, in case one was a clone and the _other _was a doppelganger. But I obviously wasn't thinking about how I'd transport you all." Fauna replied, giving a glance towards Topaz and a scowl towards Chad's 'clone' Mercury. He had used a copying spell and fled, following Topaz's scream to their rendezvous point and was going to ambush Fauna. Luckily, Fauna realized that Chad wasn't one to mention the goddesses without at least referring to Impa (which was strange, but Fauna never bothered to question him about it).

"Well, the good thing is - we caught that stupid brat. The bad news is - well, Kiara fainted."

"Topaz."

"Topaz? You mean Kiara?"

"Nope, Topaz."

"Topaz?"

"Yes."

"...her name is Topaz?"

Fauna face palmed.

"_Her _name is Topaz. The girl you were arguing with a while ago - before Mercury showed up was Kiara. Kiara isn't here anymore!"

"Isn't that what I just said?"

Fauna groaned. As quickly as she could, she explained to Chad all she knew - skipping out on moments that seemed awkward, filling him in with the details. After a while, he began to understand.

"...oh." He simply replied. All she explained to him only got her a 'oh' and not a, 'that explains' or 'sorry' or something of that sort. Of course, Fauna wasn't going to bother him since she didn't want to start arguing again. She only sighed in response.

'_Oh well_,' she thought, '_no need to fuss about it though...but I wonder...what **is **wrong with Kiara?_'

"Hey Fauna - Fauna?" Chad said, waving a hand in her face. She scowled.

"Yes?!" She huffed, purely aggravated by his rudeness.

"I was going to get the supplies but I need to know if you need anything else."

"Oh! Yes! We need a few more things. Cloaks, satchels, rope, bottles - for carrying things of course - , food, supplies, everything I mentioned earlier..."

"Oh, ok. Got it." He said, scribbling everything down on a gigantic leaf, rolling it up, and shoving it in his satchel. "I'll take care of it. For now, I need to scout out the village. Think you can handle him?" He asked. Fauna cast a glance toward the unconscious boy.

"Yeah, I think so."

"All right great, because I won't be around for the next ten to twenty minutes." He said, dashing off. Fauna just shook her head.

'_Perhaps he could have watched them..._' Turning her back towards the village, Fauna squeezed out a damp cloth before placing it back on Topaz's forehead. Unfortunately, it wasn't very cold. Getting up, Fauna began to clean up around their camping spot. Mercury was in a small cave they found, and Topaz was hanging in a hammock between two trees. They left where they were originally, fearing that someone would discover them there ever since Topaz started screaming. She now laid in the hammock cradled in a few blankets, a couple feet above the ground. A small camp fire nearby kept her and Fauna warm.

Fauna walked towards the cave and checked on Mercury. He began to groan and mutter. Soon the pest would be awake. Fauna sat down and rested her head against the cave, letting out a frustrated sigh. She would love to have gone to the village, but she wasn't sure Chad would know that Topaz needed to be kept at an even temperate, the fire blazing, and Mercury alive - because she was quite sure Chad wanted to kill him. She let out an annoyed groan and leaned against the cool stone of the cave. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw Mercury trying to cut his bonds loose with a sharp rock.

"You're wasting your time." She simply said, not facing him, but staring straight ahead. He stopped, probably surprised that she saw him trying to get free. He paused, as if waiting for her to blabber on about why he couldn't get loose and such. But instead, she kept her mouth shut. He muttered something under his breath and turned away. But the fidgeting continued.

"_You're wasting your time_," she said in a singsong voice, looking the other way and snickering. He grumbled. As he continued, she said it again.

"**_You're wasting your-_**"

"**Puh-leez shut up!**" He shouted, clearly not finding her song amusing in the least. Fauna rolled her eyes. It was fun while it lasted. "Just keep your stinking songs and other crappy crud to yourself!" Fauna did not find that at all nice. In fact, that was quite rude. She rolled her eyes again, stood up and looked at him. He scowled. His silver-blonde hair shimmering in the light, glittering here and there. His blue eyes flashed with fury. He twitched uneasily in his bonds, finding it a bit tight for his likings. Suddenly, he flashed a flirtatious grin.

"Say, sweetheart." He paused, "I'm sure you wouldn't want to hurt me if you wanted me to tell you why I - accidentally - aggravated your friend and attacked you. So, do you mind if you loosen my bonds a bit? It is a little tight. I promise, you'll enjoy what happens next..."

Fauna was shocked. Then she plastered a fake grin on her face. "Sure..." she said in a sugary voice. She slowly sashayed toward him and bent down. "Anything for you...jerk!" She shouted, her face turning into a scowl, color rising into her cheeks, and her hand flying across his face. "Don't you ever say something like that to me again or I will personally kick you in the shin-"

"I'm back Fawn!" Chad said, popping in. His eyebrows were raised. He examined Fauna and Mercury quickly before a grin popped on his face. "What were you going to say?"

"Kick him in the shin."

"Shin?"

"Of course I was going to say that!" Fauna snapped, standing up and pointing a thumb in his direction. "This kid just tried to sweet talk me." She glared at Mercury who only gave them a sheepish look.

"Well, I guess that's normal. You are a bit..." He bit his tongue and coughed the last few words before continuing, "Here you go." He handed her a large package. "We can distribute this in the morning...and deal with _him_."

"Yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, how did it go? Did you have any trouble?" Fauna asked, eying Mercury suspiciously.

"Nope, no problems whatsoever."

"Alright. That's swell. I'll go check on Kiara."

* * *

Fauna spun around and left Chad and Mercury in the same room. There was an awkward silence in the room before Chad leaned against the cool stone wall and spoke.

"You were trying to sweet talk my friend Fauna here? Sheesh, what a dunce." Mercury scowled at him and turned away. But Chad just got up and walked in his way. "You know I'm talking to you buddy."

"Buddy? _Buddy?! _What the heck makes you think we are buddies stupid head?"

"Ever heard of sarcasm?"

"Of course I have!"

"Well you should learn more I guess..."

Mercury muttered something under his breath before Chad just left him in there. Outside the cave, he settled on a fallen log and stared straight ahead.

_Perhaps we may be able to make it to Hyrule castle in time if Topaz gets better. But if she doesn't get better, we may have to leave her behind. But, I think she'll get well eventually. Another problem is, she keeps on getting sick, or fainting. I think Fauna should take her to a doctor or something. But for the moment, I think I should propose an idea that may save some time. _Chad jumped up and started walking over to Fauna who was tending to Topaz.

"Say, I had an idea that may save time."

She looked up, before going back to tending to Kiara. "Uh huh?" She said, dabbing a cloth to Topaz's forehead.

"Maybe I should go to Hyrule Castle alone. It would save time, and I'm sure you can take care of Topaz. She might be well by the time I make it to the castle."

Fauna stopped and looked up, surprised.

"_Alone_?" She was puzzled, "but that leaves me with _Mercury _and Topaz." She lowered her voice down to a whisper. "And he's still dangerous. I don't believe you should go. You don't know what or _who_ you'll run into."

"Fauna, I think it's for the better. Imagine help in time for the village. Topaz has been slowing us down lately. She hasn't been the same lately. You know, because of her predicament. If she was her normal self...we would probably be on our way back to the village with help and supplies for everyone **if** she was feeling well. We could be heroes!"

"I'm not sure we will still be heroes." Fauna mumbled. "We could still be too late. You never know what'll happen on our way back. We could be delayed."

"Fauna, stop looking on the dark side! Besides, I'm sure you can't take the journey with Topaz dragging you down."

"For your information, I can handle myself. But you should stop being naive and consider the things that can go wrong instead of going willy-nilly into something you have no way of controlling and thinking everything will turn out right. They might not let us in, for all we know! She might not be there! We could get injured and be slowed down some other way!" Fauna said in an outburst. Her face turned red and ferocious. "Really Chad, you must try to be the smart kid I _thought _you were."

The words stung Chad, but he didn't reply. Instead, he turned away and left her. It was a rude thing to say, but he wouldn't argue. He knew that their arguments could go on for a long time. Or turn into an awkward silence.

_Well, she can say that all she wants, but I'm quite sure she told me a while ago that she could handle herself. So why can't she take care of Topaz and Mercury? She knocked him out, and I'm sure those magic bonds won't let him out anytime soon. Besides, Kiara - or Topaz, or whoever she is - will get well soon. By the time all of this is done, I'll have brought supplies and help back to the village. It couldn't hurt. Besides, I'm quite sure she can handle herself, like she told me. _Chad had been thinking for a long time and hadn't notice Fauna come running up to him until she shook him lightly.

"Chad! Where do you think you were going? You can't leave Mercury by himself like that, he isn't safe!" She hissed menacingly. He was a bit stunned, and he sat up in confusion.

"Huh? Mercury? Oh, well, I figured you could handle him _yourself_." He said bitterly.

"Now is not the time for useless babble!" She shouted angrily, "Now get back in there and make sure he's there!"

Begrudgingly, he trotted back to the cave and found Mercury trying to stand up with his arms and legs bound. Wanting a way to let out his anger, Chad shoved him back on the ground.

"And _where _do you think you're going?" Chad demanded, dragging out the word 'where' in aggravation. Mercury tumbled to the dirt and looked up. His eyes flashed in anger. He gritted his teeth and launched himself against Chad, knocking him down. Chad tumbled backwards and felt his head bang against the floor. It throbbed for a bit before he lashed out in anger. He picked up Mercury by the collar and delivered a punch to his face. His eyes flickered in rage and he felt a dark aura surround him. Mercury looked surprised and furious at the same time.

He rolled away and tripped Chad over. Now Chad's anger bubbled over. In his palm, he formed a dark magic sphere and launched it at Mercury. Mercury only smirked and the bolt hit his bonds instead. And tore it. Mercury jumped backwards, launched his own sphere, freed his ankles and disappeared in a flash of black and white sparkles.

Chad gawked at the square where Mercury was. Then he heard a familiar gasp behind him. Fauna. _Just great_. He turned around. He saw a look of surprise, and then anger. She looked as if she was going to scream his name, but she only turned on her heel and dashed out. Chad just stared after her. He hadn't made anything better attacking Mercury. _He had freed him_. Chad sat down. What kind of mess had he gotten himself in? Yeah, I'll tell you. He stepped in something that wasn't mud.

* * *

Fauna dashed off. _How could he? _He had just freed their nemesis. The kid was now on the loose. It was all Chad's fault. What was he thinking? She was mad - no, try furious - with Chad. That nitwit had just let someone loose who could endanger their mission. Now there was one thing Fauna really wanted to happen. She wanted to get rid of him. She stopped and scowled. Maybe his idea on getting help wouldn't be so bad. But what would they be doing in the meantime? They should probably check on the village. But could they get back?

_You know, maybe I should take Kiara to the Zora city. Perhaps we could be safe there for the moment and perhaps find some help...it's settled then. _Fauna stopped and looked back. The camp looked so far away. She sighed and started walking back. Slowly. She had to clear up her bitter feelings with Chad before she could be in his company again. And not only that, she needed to make sure Topaz was...alright? Topaz! Fauna stopped when she heard another terrible scream. No one had been watching her for the past few moments! Mercury could have taken her all over again and they might not find her!

Fauna broke out into a run and darted back to the camp. She didn't stop until she was there. She stopped and sucked in a breath. No. Fauna's fears had been confirmed. _Topaz (with Kiara's body), was gone._

* * *

**Dun dun dun. Cliffhanger for the win. Anyways. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. It was a bit last minute, and if you can tell - rushed. So, if you plan on continuing to read the story after this. Don't forget to review to every single chapter (or at least this one)! Well, once again I would like to remind you that there is a _new poll_ in my page that I need you - the viewers - to _vote_ in. Your opinion (onion+pin) is very important! So head over there really quick once you've given that delightful review (or favorite, flame or follow). Thanks for reading, and I hope you enjoyed the chapter!**

**Yours truly,**

_AuthorPen1__1_


	23. Nothing But Trouble

**Thank you all! I have just reached 50 reviews and that was a really huge milestone I just smashed! Oh, and 736 and counting views! 11 Favorites/follows - all combined! I hope that my next milestones can be smashed. You can help by simply leaving a review, favorite, follow, flame or just view (which you did so feel free to do one on the things I listed). So instead of celebrating, I'm going to get straight to business.**

**Previously... _Mercury escapes, Kiara switches with Topaz, Topaz gets kidnapped, I leave a bunch of references, and Fauna is mad - no, furious!_**

**_Libby8980 - _**_Is it Link? Ah...we may never know...not that I mean to leave this as a cliffhanger for you forever...  
_

_**Legendoffun -** 50th reviewer you are! And I have an error you found :P Huh, maybe you have heard that before, but I'm quite sure it had NOTHING to do with SWR AT ALL! \"(^.^)/ Yes, SWR reference 4 the win. Yep, Merc escapes... ok, thanks for doing the poll._

_**What poll?!**_ **Oh, I have a poll on my profile I need you all to vote on so I can decide which fandom to write for (Star Wars Rebels, MLP, LoZ) - so _P_-_L_-_E_-_A_-_S_-_E_ _vote_! Anyways, thanks for reading.**

* * *

**Chapter 23  
**

So it was decided. Since Topaz/Kiara was kidnapped, they'd have to find her. But someone needed to get the message out to Hyrule Castle. And then later on, it was decided that Chad was going to the castle to deliver the message while Fauna was going to find Topaz. At the moment, they were about to go their own separate paths.

"You know where you're going, right?" Fauna asked, finally wrapping her arms with the bandages to hide the markings.

"Yeah. Of course I do. It's Hyrule Castle...you can't miss it."

"You remember how to read hylian, yeah?"

"Yeah, you know how to find Kiara right?"

"Yup, but do you know what you need to say?"

"Are you scared to find Kiara, or should we end this conversation?"

"Let's end it."

"Alright, meet you back at the village, Fauna."

"Yeah. See you."

* * *

Fauna turned away and knelt down to the ground. The only thing she could find Kiara - Topaz - by was a simple necklace. It was a feather, a rainbow feather. Fauna squinted. This couldn't have been _Kiara's _necklace. She saw it on Mercury. Oh, wait! She could track him by this. Every object had an aura, and when worn, a small fraction of it rubbed off. Now the only problem was, that Fauna had to start dowsing for it.

And dowsing is incredibly annoying. You constantly have to make sure you aren't following the wrong target, and it isn't like there's a clear path in front of you, you have to make your way there. It could be behind and above something, which is just a nuisance.

"Well, I have my work cut out for me." She mumbled, organizing her things in her new knapsack. When she was done, she started dowsing. She closed her eyes, and with the amulet in her hand, she slowly started to trace the aura. At first, there was nothing at all. Then, she felt a small tug headed not far from Hyrule Castle. It had to be Kiara (and Topaz). Putting the amulet in her pocket, she started out on her way. Chad had already left for Hyrule Castle that morning while Fauna hid all traces of their camp.

Dusting herself off, Fauna made her way onto the path headed to Hyrule Castle. She figured that once she was there, she would go around it. Easier, it would be, since there were actual roads to Hyrule Castle. Now if she had a horse, she could make it there faster... But why didn't she just fly? Fauna could simply give you the answer.

Because flying takes magic, and magic takes energy, and Fauna needs her energy to walk _and _dowse.

'_Well this certainly is going to be a long walk_', Fauna thought, trotting down the same road Chad had just gone down that morning, '_I wonder if Chad has made it to Hyrule Castle yet? Did he get to see Impa yet? Maybe I'll meet them on my way there, and then Impa can help me find Kiara. After all, it's very important._'

_Creak! Rumble, rumble, rumble..._

Fauna looked over her shoulder to see a large wagon rolling by. Stepping back, she watched a girl about fourteen with reddish-brown hair leading four horses towards Hyrule Castle. Taking her chances, Fauna ran along beside it.

"Hey, where are you going today?" Fauna asked, keeping herself a safe distance from the horses, wheels, and the dust that was flying up with it.

Blue eyes locked on to Fauna and narrowed. The girl shifted uncomfortably before replying, "Castle town." Before looking straight ahead.

_Well, I was hoping for a better response but... _Fauna stopped thinking about the girl's response as she saw the wagon go faster. _What's up with that? _Fauna wondered, pushing herself forward and running until she was beside the cart. Then she noticed the girl get very worried and frustrated. Looking over her shoulder, Fauna saw nothing. _What gives? _Fauna thought. Then she **realized **something. She looked like she was a bandit. But she couldn't remove it. She needed to cover those tattoos, and the dust idea didn't seem so appealing. But there was one thing she could still do. Hitch a ride. Looking in front of the wagon, she noticed a rock ahead. That would be her chance to jump in the wagon without the girl noticing.

Moving behind the wagon, she slowed down to a stop. Then Fauna sprinted. The fastest she could go. The same energy she had when she rushed into the forest, headfirst, to save a mystical flower and a friend. When she was just a foot away from the wagon, she jumped. Not to high, that the girl would see her, but not low enough that she would just be simply hopping. And then Fauna dove. Just in time too. She rolled into the back besides some bags of flour, and then the wagon hit the rock. _Thump! _Fauna bounced and hit one of the barrels, making it groan and spin for a moment before Fauna stopped it. Then it was smooth riding.

_Phew! _Fauna thought, _that was a close one! Just wait 'til I tell Chad. I should have just gone with his dust and dirt idea. But then again, we would have to leave the bandages on our head or else..._

Fauna checked her bag and was relieved to find that the glass didn't break. Good thing she stuffed the extra bandages and scraps there. Fauna let out her hair and quickly combed as many knots as she dared. Then she quickly braided it up. Dusting herself off, she was satisfied. _I look perfectly civil besides for the fact that I look like a bandit. It might be a while until we make it to Castle Town, so I'll find a comfortable place to practice some spells. _Fauna looked about until she spotted a hammock and net above. The problem was, the ladder was near the front. That could pose a problem if it broke, or fell over, or was extremely creaky. But she didn't want to take her chances.

Putting everything she took out back in her knapsack, she peered over the flour bag and looked ahead. The girl was perfectly calm, and seemed to be relaxing. Taking her chances, Fauna rolled about until she was beside the ladder. Then she quickly began to climb it. _Creak, crack, crrreeakk!, _the annoying ladder squealed, as Fauna quickly hurried up the ladder and into the hammock. She was relieved when she was safely in the swaying hammock. Then she flipped over and stifled a gasp.

Right underneath the hammock, was a guy asleep on the floor. He was dressed in green (except for his boots, satchel and chainmail) with a sharp sword and a shield strapped to his back. She wasn't sure _what _was in those satchels, but she didn't want to find out. To her relief, he didn't move, and was probably sound asleep.

Or so she thought.

* * *

Chad walked along the dirt path until his legs started to ache. Then he settled down and ate a quick lunch.

"I'll make my way there tomorrow." Chad said to no one in particular, "besides, I could use a nap." The sun had begun to set and Chad was exhausted, he packed up his remaining food and then climbed a tree, set up his hammock, and relaxed. Soon enough, he dozed off.

It only seemed like a minute ago when he went to sleep, but when his eyes flickered open, it was dark. At first, Chad wasn't sure _what _had awakened him. Then he heard it. Snarling and growling, he looked down and saw a big wolfos. Chad groaned. He needed to stretch, but wolfos wasn't something he wanted to deal with. He tied his things up and stepped on to another branch before putting the hammock away. Once his pack was in place, he fiddled around for a branch. Grabbing it, he broke it off.

"Here, fetch." Chad said, rather annoyed at being awakened. He threw the stick as far as he could. The wolfos didn't bother to move at all.

"So you aren't a dog, you're a wolfos. Don't make me come down there." And kill you if need be, Chad thought distastefully. The wolfos snarled and howled. _I got to get out of here, he (or she) is calling more of its pack. And I can't deal with them all at once. _

Wildly, Chad leapt out of the three and landed a few feet behind the wolfos. It turned around and growled. It opened its mouth and lunged. Chad backed flipped and delivered a kick to its snout before turning around and sprinting off. He knew that it would probably hold a grudge and try to kill him, but he would make it waste time trying to catch him. He would keep on running until the wolfos pack gave up. But it didn't help when he spotted some glowing eyes around him. _More, _he thought gloomily, _well they certainly heard that call. But how am I supposed to take them down? _Chad thought for a moment. _Duh! Magic of course!_

Chad stopped and turned towards the incoming creatures. Six, seven, eight, no, nine of them showed up along with the one with the bruised muzzle. Chad jumped backwards only a bit when he calculated the odds. Ten against one. He slowly put one hand behind his back and waited for them to make their moves. But instead, they stood their, eyes blinking slowly, growling, tails slowly swaying side-to-side in a hypnotizing pattern. Chad squinted only a tiny bit until he could make out all of their forms. They were large alright, not the size of the street dogs that probably roamed Castle Town's alleys at night.

Slowly, Chad walked backwards and watched as the wolves, five at once, made their way towards him in two rows. All of them blocked out his means of escape. And turning around would leave him vulnerable. They would pounce at any sudden movement, and he was tired. Jumping out of a tree when you wake up isn't ideal, and a midnight sprint wasn't something Chad had done since the adventure started. One foot behind the other, Chad made his way slowly, never letting his eyes leave the wolfos. Then one jumped forward. It was a scrawny thing, but the sharp fangs and large claws looked like they could rip away bark. That was their first move. Chad launched a small energy sphere near it and grinned when the magic orb exploded and a large flash of light flashed. The wolfos howled and dropped to the floor. He could feel the energy leave it as the lifeless body dropped onto the dirt path.

Well, at least it didn't starve to death. But that made the others furious. They all bounded at him. There was no way he could attack them at once without using too much energy. At the last second, he made a barrier that blocked the outstretched claws and incoming fangs. They all bounced off of it and landed a few feet back. Chad stopped to take a breather. When he looked up, another came at him.

"Well **you** started it!" Chad said angrily, launching a few needles towards his opponent. The wolf flinched, before wobbly dropping on his side. Dozing needles, was what he had reached for. It was a very strong brew that had been made by Fauna. Somersaulting to avoid the next attack, Chad blended sheikah and dark magic attacks until every wolf was either gone, wounded, or dead. Chad dropped down, tired. His muscles felt a bit sore after the battle. _Probably a dark magic using side effect_, Chad thought, standing up and making his way to Castle Town. Hyrule Castle loomed up ahead, the moon's light illuminating a large, brick castle with many walls. They wouldn't pose a problem, Chad would find an opening and make his way over the wall. Unless, he could just walk through the gates, that is.

A small yawn made its way out of Chad's mouth as he continued walking to the gate. It didn't surprise him that the drawbridge was up. He could make his way in tomorrow. Climbing up a taller tree, he once more set up his hammock. Then he wrapped a blanket around him, and using his pack, laid his head down and fell asleep.

* * *

Fauna, content that the boy was asleep, pulled out her spellbook and looked at the spells that she had written down that Gaia offered to teach her. Teleportation, invisibility, telepathy, flight, and illusions. They would all come in handy, _if_ she would ever need to use them. Pulling out charcoal, Fauna scribbled some notes before placing her spellbook away. And then, time seemed to slow down. The charcoal pencil she had been fiddling in her fingers slipped out of her grasp and fell through the holes, and down to the boy.

Stretching out her hand, Fauna just narrowly missed the pencil as it fell. But she managed to stop it by a levitation spell, just a few inches above his nose. Fauna sighed. Then she gulped.

His eyes flew open and he stared at the object suspended above his nose. Fauna wasn't sure whether he was shocked or amused, but she dismissed that thought as soon as his eyes found her. Caught. Red-handed.

Now at first, Fauna wasn't sure whether he would start shouting, 'cause she was dressed like a bandit or something, but instead, he gave her a puzzled look. Then he snapped his fingers. Grabbing the charcoal, he stood up and handed it _back _to her. Now Fauna got a good look at the boy.

Dirty-blonde hair, ocean blue eyes. He wore a strange looking green hat and had a sharp sword and a shield with the Hyrule emblem on it. He smiled when he noticed she was staring at him.

"Sorry." Fauna squeaked, "I didn't mean it." She whispered, as soon as she composed herself and remembered what she was doing. He only smiled and shook his head. Then he sat down on a crate and stretched.

"You can speak, right?" Fauna asked, watching him from her perch, after she had put away her charcoal pencil. He nodded.

"Then why don't you?"

He sighed, and shook his head. He relaxed against the wall and closed his eyes. Taking her chances, Fauna leapt down beside him. "Why don't you speak?" She asked again, this time, a little more loudly. He only opened one eye, and then quickly shut it again.

"Hello! You can hear me right?" Fauna said, getting a bit irritated. The kid was obviously trying to make her mad. Then the wagon jerked to a stop and Fauna swallowed. The girl with the reddish-brown hair stood there, her eyes wide. She started to reach for something Fauna couldn't see, but she had the impression that it could be a sword or something. So she jumped up and tackled the girl. As soon as she was pinned down, she noticed that she was reaching for a broom. She wore a faded blue dress with a brown apron, and her blue eyes flashed with surprise and fury.

"You!" She hissed, narrowing her eyes, "I thought I told you to leave me alone!"

"Actually girl, you didn't." Fauna replied, "you just said you were headed to Castle Town."

"What's it to you anyways?" The girl asked bitterly, squirming only a little bit to free her hand, but Fauna put her free hand down to stop her.

"I just happen to be headed to Castle Town, that's all." Fauna said

"Well, I didn't say you could hitch a ride you no good, foreigner!"

"I. Am. Not. A. No. Good. Foreigner." Fauna said slowly and angrily.

"Well, don't just stand there, come and help me!" The girl squealed. Fauna at first was confused, then she remember the boy in green. And in the next moment, she felt herself getting dragged away from the angry girl. She had jumped up as soon as she was free and dusted herself off.

"You should be happy I don't have my father's sword. But I'm taking you to the soldiers as soon as possible, thief."

"I am not a thief!" Fauna said angrily.

"Well, if you ain't a thief, you most certainly are a bandit! And bandits are ruthless killers that steal things, just like that Castle Town lot." The girl said crossly. "Bunch of dirty bandits they are, just like you!" She literally spat out the last words, as if they left a bad taste in her mouth, which it probably did.

"I'm not a bandit, even if I dressed like one!"

Tears started to fill up the girls eyes. "How do I know that? It's people like you that killed my parents! It's the reason I have to work this stinking job and live in that filthy city! It's the reason my aunt is lying in bed sick, but still working so she can clothe me!"

Fauna was startled. She hadn't known this girl for a day, and she had already heard of the problems this girl was facing.

Now instead of the tears running down her eyes, their was a look of bitterness and hate. "And now _I _have to deal with another of these runts, here to steal from me." Now Fauna tried to get loose, but of course that guy wouldn't let her go. "Now what should I do with you? Take you to jail, no doubt, but I don't have that kind of power. But I'll take you to the guards and they'll know what to do with you."

"Are you sure you shouldn't just ask her what she's doing here?" The voice was new, and immediately Fauna knew who had spoken. He was holding her, after all.

"Well, Link, I don't like her one bit." The girl said, wiping a stray tear with the back of her hand, "she maybe one of those gerudo slaves."

"And she might not."

"Are you with me or against me?"

"Neither, I'm neutral."

"Well, then you can just get out my wagon."

"Sure." He dropped Fauna and walked out. Now Fauna noticed that it was getting dark, and Hyrule Castle was just up ahead. The only thing separating them was a wide field where rumors said that stalchildren rested underground, coming up at night to kill.

"W-wait!" The girl said, reaching in his direction, "y-you're just going to leave?"

"Yeah, you told me to _get out of your wagon_." Link pointed out.

"B-but, t-t-there's stalchildren!" She stuttered, her face growing pale, and the anger in her eyes turning into fear.

"So...what you're saying is, you want me to stay and protect you?"

She looked down. At first, she said nothing, but as a minute passed, she looked back up.

"I never really learned how to defend myself against them. And...and...I have to make it to the town before night settles down." The girl mumbled, her voice barely audible. If Fauna was Link, she would have continued walking. The girl was mad. She wanted him to get out of her wagon, and then she wanted him back so he could protect her. For what? She might just leave him stranded once she got to the town! Fauna shook her head. It was an easy decision.

"I'll stay." Fauna looked up in surprise as the girl jumped to her feet and hugged him.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Thank you! Let's go as fast as possible. Feel free to sit up here with me, and I'm sure my aunt won't mind if you stay over for dinner." The girl said eagerly, getting the horses to a steady trot. Seeing that she was momentarily forgotten, Fauna made her way to the back and looked out. The path they had gone over looked so long and faraway. The wagon rattled a little bit as it made its way across the field. Reclining her back against a couple sacks of flour, Fauna pulled out the rainbow feather amulet. She closed her eyes and started dowsing again. A slight tug in the direction of Castle Town made Fauna smile. She was headed in the right direction.

* * *

At a tall building, a boy with silverish-blonde hair stopped and dropped a girl down. He smiled.

"Finally, I made it." He said aloud. He stopped for a moment and smiled. It was Mercury, and Kiara was with him. The building he stood in front of was tall, and home to a giant library. He levitated Kiara and walked inside, pushing the door open with magic. He stopped to illuminate the room and knelt down on one knee.

"She's here, my lady. The disembodied spirit."

In front of him was a girl about seventeen with black hair and red eyes. She squinted at Mercury until she recognized him. On her head was a silver crown, and a dark red dress trailed behind her.

"Are you sure this is the girl? She should be a spirit, not a body."

"But it is where the orb took me." Mercury said, pulling out a red orb the size of his hand. "And the energy radiates within her. Not only that, but she has _two _spirits. One is obviously the owner, and the other...our little prey."

"Ah." The girl said, a small smile on her lips. "Let it begin. Activate the orb, and bring the other girl here."

Two floating beings hovered in, carrying a pale, motionless girl. Her eyes were closed and her hair a pale, silver color. They dropped her down on the ground with a thud. Mercury walked over to Kiara and knelt down beside her. Touching the orb to her forehead, it slowly glimmered. Then a bright flash of light emitted from it and there was two different small orbs. Kiara's skin turned ashy-white.

"This one, is the other girl's." Mercury said, fingering a white and red orb. He threw it back at Kiara. "And this one.." he trailed off, a black and red orb the size of a marble in his hand, "is hers." He threw it at the other body. Both of the color of their skin returned back to normal. Instead of silver hair, the other girl's hair turned to a dark blackish-red.

"Well, she may of thought that she could escape using the orb, but it turned back on her. She should of known that it was foolish of her to take it." The lady laughed.

"Uhm, we do have a slight problem." Mercury interrupted the girl in the middle of her evil laugh. "The power of the orb is still in both of them."

"And?"

"We can't get it out until everything is 'straight' again, and the stars are aligned, and you know." Mercury, said rolling his eyes in annoyance. "Whenever we do something, there's always a catch."

"Well, I guess you better get your friends to get that snowball rolling." The girl simply replied. "As for you," she faced the floating things, "take those two into separate cells. The last thing we want is for the magic to start working. Keep them separated at all times, and _watch them_."

"Yes my lady..." they chorused. They levitated Topaz and Kiara and left. The girl grumbled to herself and sat down. Mercury went into another room.

"So your mission was successful?" An older girl asked Mercury, relaxing in a chair.

"Not really. We still have to wait on everything else, and then she wants us to collect the other orbs." Mercury complained, "Hetia, this isn't fair!"

Hetia placed a hand on his shoulder, "calm down Mercury. Everything will turn out fine, and we won't be under this little girl. We'll have the power to do whatever we want, and rule Hyrule."

"Well that sounds better." Mercury grumbled. But he had a bad feeling. And he knew something was going to go _wrong_.

* * *

**Edit: _For those who are confused, the girl driving the wagon was never originally Malon or I'm sure I would have wrote that. Sorry! "'^.^_**

**Finally, we are getting somewhere. I hate to leave everyone with cliffhangers and fillers, but I don't want to drag out the story. Link! He's here! And yes, Hyrule Castle isn't far away! I hope you liked the chapter!  
**

**Yours truly,**

_AuthorPen11_


	24. Clearing Up Things

**Grah! I just wrote about three paragraphs and it didn't save! -.- Well, I'll have to rewrite it as best as I can...So, for those who were confused, the girl I wrote about _isn't _Malon and I didn't intend to make her nearly exactly like her. It just...happened.  
**

**Legendoffun -** _Yep, errors. And anyways, Link will probably talk every now and then. And maybe he will go with them. But seems to me, he already has a destination planned. Yep, the girl wasn't Malon...sorry for confusing you!_

**Libby8980 -** _Yeah...Mercury isn't Link...and the girl I wrote about...wasn't Malon either...(perhaps I just wanted to model them after them (confusing I know)?) Well, I'm glad you are still reading the story and sorry for confusing you!_

**Sorry about the confusion next chapter, it is time I clear everything up!**

* * *

**Chapter 24  
**

At first, Topaz wasn't sure what happened. All she knew, was that she felt funny...she felt...normal. Slowly opening her eyes, she gasped. Here she was, in the library, in a floating cage. She was herself, she had her hair, probably her eyes, her body was back! But how? And where was Kiara? Topaz coughed. She had stirred up some dust in her wake and a menacing creature turned about to face her.

"Ahh...the spirit girl lives..." it hissed slowly, "if the mistress was not here, I would share you with my poe friends."

Topaz shivered. All she knew about poes, was that they wished to harm you. And this type of 'sharing' did not sound nice in the least.

"What is going on?" Topaz demanded, "why am I in chains? Where am I? What are you doing here?"

"Ah...'your' library of course, and I'm guarding you. Well, apparently, we do have a little problem..."

"What problem?"

The eye twinkled, "do I look stupid enough to tell you? NO! So you can keep your mouth shut before I knock you out." It grumbled, turning away. Topaz finally got herself in a sitting position. It was a dark room, and the only thing she could see was the monster before her. Feeling defeated, she let out a sigh. There wasn't much she could do, and she certainly wasn't going to ask that snappy wizzrobe for anything.

Suddenly, she heard the scraping of a cell gate, and saw an approaching lantern.

"What are _you _doing here?" The wizzrobe asked the visitor.

"I'm here for speaking to the 'prisoner'."

"You can not speak with her now."

"Is that so?" The voice sounded annoyed and angry, "well I guess I would like to schedule it for... _NOW_!"

The wizzrobe hissed and slowly disappeared into the shadows. But Topaz had no idea who it was until the light came up to his face.

"Mercury!" Topaz was filled with confusion and relief. _What was he doing here? _"How did you make that wizzrobe leave? And what are you even doing here?"

"I'd like to know how you ended up here." He replied, looking about. He lowered his voice, "Hetia wants you to join us, and then I'll free you."

"But...Hetia is... she's...I don't know."

"Obviously, you did, if you panicked and ran when you did. Now you make such a mess, our plan has to be put off."

"What plan?"

"You aren't part of the group, so I couldn't tell you anyways. But I want to know what happened."

"What...happened?"

"Yes. Before you became a spirit."

"I-I-I talked to her. Zelda - Princess Zelda I mean...she said that I needed, had to get some help. She said Hyrule was in danger and she needed the people from her vision. A hero in green and five others."

"That's a total of six people." Mercury mumbled to himself. "But wait, what were you doing at the castle?"

"I wasn't at the castle, she meant me in Hyrule field. She talked about a vision she had...it was awful...a new queen won't really destroy Hyrule...will it? And Hetia didn't _try_ kill my friends...did she?"

"What she did is none of my business. And I'm not a fortuneteller either. But I have to tell you this. Those _children _are not your friends. They don't know who _you _are. They don't know _where _you are from. And they certainly _don't _trust you. They may act friendly, but they only wish to be home. I'm quite sure all of them wishes none of this ever happened. That their village wasn't set aflame. That they didn't meet us. That they didn't have to leave their home, their _dying _people and go to a selfish land called Hyrule!"

"You don't know what you're talking about! Princess Zelda is not selfish! They do trust me, they do like me, I told them!"

Until then, they had been talking in hushed whispers. Mercury's eyebrows furrowed in anger.

"You don't know what you're talking about." He said. "You only told them lies. The only thing they know about you, is that you are from a completely destroyed hylian village. You aren't even _hylian_. Your name wasn't even supposed to be called _Topaz_." Mercury looked away. He started walking off. Then he stopped. His last words came out in a small voice. "_You were supposed to be my sister_."

* * *

As the morning started Chad made his way into Castle Town. The bustling place smelled delicious and awful at the same time. Street beggars, pickpockets, ravenous dogs, the place was the worst. But the wonderful smells of food was what lured the people out of their homes and into the busy place. Chad avoided walking through the crowds. He jumped from rooftop to rooftop. It was the quickest way, if he wanted to avoid being chased down, stolen from and have his ears begged off. One thought always appalled him. That his village was those beggars, begging for mercy, food, medicine, homes, help. And it was him, a more fortunate person, who walked by, their pleas falling on dead ears.

He stumbled and fell on the edge of a house and tumbled onto a box of rotting crates. All of a sudden, he was surrounded by boys a few years younger than him, armed with dull knives and wolfos claws.

"You ruined my house! Pay up feller!" A slim kid called, slowly making his way towards Chad, "pay or die."

Chad jumped up. "Sorry, I didn't even -"

"Shut up! Give me your rupees pal!"

_Pal...that's like Mercury saying I was his pal...this kid is nuts._

"Listen, I don't have any rupees, but if you could point out where Hyrule Castle is-"

"I said shut up! You are either hiding those rupees somewhere, or you spent it all on your nice things and ain't sharing!"

"You said it Slim." One of them said, referring to the kid who wouldn't stop telling Chad to 'shut up'. "You better pay to Cally, or you gonna regret it!"

Chad jumped over Slim and sprinted off towards the Castle. He was only buying time when he wanted to know where Hyrule Castle was. He couldn't miss it. As soon as he made it into the market, he had to slow down. People were shoving him back and forth and he couldn't make his way through fast enough. He knelt down and saw the thieves making their way toward him quickly. They were shoving and cursing, crawling in between people's legs and bowling people over. Which was quite rude. But they were making progress towards him. So if he didn't hurry, he wouldn't escape. Someone jostled him and he fell over. This crowd was getting on his nerves.

He felt a jolt of magic and leapt up in the air. Some people gasped and pointed, others looked up in astonishment. And then he placed his foot on one head after another, quickly, so he wouldn't fall over. This left a lot of people in a bad mood and slowed down Cally and Slim's group. He could see the rest, their muddy faces and scraps of clothing tossed on, making their way towards him. But Chad didn't stop. When he came to the last person, he put both of his feet on their head and used his momentum to propel his way to the first wall separating the poor and rich markets. He nearly made his way over, but it just wasn't enough. He nearly fell, but he got his fingertips to grip the sharp stone and concrete. He couldn't pull his way up with the packs on his back. He would have to sell that stuff later.

Cally and Slim caught up. They spat on the ground, all of them to short to grab him. Then Cally got an idea.

"Let's do the brother stack, then we can get him down!" He declared triumphantly. Chad groaned. The kids started stacking until they all tumbled into a pile. They jumped up and ran. Letting out a sigh of relief, Chad looked to see what it was. It made him cheer and gulp.

Yes, it was Impa, exactly who he needed to see, but how he was dressed up in dirt and mud and trash made him look like a desperate beggar who stole stuff and wanted to climb the wall to steal more things. Chad gulped. At first, Impa acted like she didn't see him. Then she paused, and turned, her red eyes narrowing. She peeled his hands off the concrete and watched him fall. Taking in a big breath, she spoke.

"_What do you think you are doing, street rat_?"

"Lady Impa, I'm sorry for my appearance, but our village has burned and we need supplies, the people are dying and -"

"I hate to sound heartless, but what do you mean by _our_? And if you need those supplies, wouldn't you have just stole them and ran back instead of pleading to me like this?"

"But I mean the village of Shikata!" Chad said, beginning to scale the wall again.

"S-S-Shikata..." she trailed off. Then her eyes snapped with annoyance and anger, "what are you talking about?"

"The sheikah village!" Chad grumbled, "I wouldn't leave them dying if I didn't know you would help! I graduated this year...I have proof!"

Chad used a surprisingly clean patch of clothes and wiped the dirt off his face. At first, Impa didn't look impressed. Then she knelt down and examined his face.

"Z-Ziri's group?" She whispered, her voice barely audible. "I-It's been that long?"

"What do you mean 'it has been that long'?" Chad asked, struggling to climb the wall.

"I...I trained her myself..."

"Oh...really?" Chad said, nearly losing his grip on the stone but he used his other hand just in time. "This wall wasn't made for climbing..."

"Yeah, it wasn't." Impa helped him up. She lowered her voice down. "But what are you doing here? I'm not dead!"

"I know! I'm not your replacement...it is just...the village was burnt down by bandits and..." Chad's head started to go fuzzy and then his mind went blank. He started to sway, and then blacked out.

* * *

The wagon continued going towards Hyrule Castle at a steady pace. Fauna decided that she could help protect the wagon by covering the back in a magic shield. Neither Link or the girl saw her cast the spell and she intended to keep her magic abilities a secret. But that wasn't the case.

"You're a spellcaster?" It was Link. Instead of walking beside the wagon, he had slowed down and evidently watched her cast the protection spell. Fauna hesitated. After examining Link quickly, she decided it would be better to tell him that then when they were busy and in danger (which could possibly lead to getting himself killed).

"Yes. Yes I am."

Link remained silent, as if he was contemplating something. "What brings you to Hyrule?"

Fauna was shocked. _How did he know? _"W-w-what do you mean? Don't you mean Hyrule _Castle_? or _town_? or something?"

"I can tell you aren't from Hyrule." Link gave her a flat look as if he was saying _'I may not say much but I'm not stupid and I know what you are doing here'_ which disturbed Fauna greatly.

"Well..." Fauna trailed off, "...I came to -"

There was a loud scream from the front of the wagon and Link rushed off. _Did that girl really have to interrupt?_ But then Fauna saw stalchildren surrounding the wagon. Jumping off of it, she ran on the opposite side of the wagon and shot some magic blasts. They broke into a bunch of smaller bits of bones, then reformed themselves. It was quite...horrifying. Fauna shivered and continued. The girl wouldn't stop screeching, which really interrupted Fauna's concentration - much to her annoyance. Using a spell, a long vine from beside Fauna emerged from the ground. It followed the arm movements of Fauna and she used it to clear away incoming stalchildren. Then it disappeared and she hurried to the wagon so she wouldn't be left alone to deal with the creatures.

Link was already taking care of business with a large group of stalchildren. Even the girl was doing something. Using her broom she protected the horses _and _managed to keep them moving at the same time. But the frightened ponies also began to buck and kick. Some of their hooves hit stalchildren, but they were also damaging the wagon. Fauna would need to keep the creatures away so they could make it to Hyrule Castle before the wagon was smithereens and stuff.

"Hylia's Sphere!" A green and pink sphere flew off and cleared a large patch of stalchildren. "Yes." Fauna said happily. But Link must have thought she was showing off and acted like it was a game. He let the stalchildren get real close and then he did a spin attack - a very difficult sword move. You had to make sure you didn't get dizzy or throw your sword in the process. Then Link would roll around a group and slash them apart like a fruit ninja. Even adding some battle cries while he was at it.

Then the girl let out a yell "Stalfos!"

There was three of them. Link hurried to deal with one while Fauna went to deal with the other two. She could barely keep them away from the wagon, their attacks were hard to dodge, quick and well planned. Fauna was mostly on the offensive. Then she heard a battle cry. She jumped out of the way, and in mid-flip, watched the girl (who was uspposed to be driving the wagon) drive her broom straight at the stalfos' head. She managed to knock one of their heads off and it disappeared. But she missed the other and it used its sword. It just dug into her back and she let out a cry. When Fauna landed she used a magic blast and pushed the stalfos away. Then she scooped up the girl and leapt towards the wagon using a magic jump. She got inside and laid the girl on her back.

"Link, come on! Get the horses to move faster! She's hurt and I can't fight and keep her alive!" Fauna shouted turned to the girl. She soaked some leaves in the spring water and applied it to the heavily bleeding wound. Using all she had, Fauna wrapped it up and laid the girl on a cot, this time, not on her face. Then Fauna hurried to the front. Link had managed to get the horses to speed up and had left the stalfchildren and stalfos in the dust. Fauna sighed. They had covered Hyrule field. Link slowed the horses down when they got to the drawbridge.

A soldier carrying a torch stepped up.

"State your business."

"I'm bringing in supplies for market. Plus we have someone wounded back here."

"That's not going to work kid!"

"Speak to the stalfos then!" Link yelled, pointing at the horde making their way towards them. The guy gulped. In a panic, he pointed to the closest corner on the inside of the wall.

"Go there and stay there!" As soon as the wagon was in, the guy shouted, "Stalfos horde! Raise the gates!"

Link moved the wagon to the corner and stopped it. "Is she alright?" He didn't look away from the tired ponies. He jumped down and started to give them each rubs.

"S-she'll live...but I need some herbs. That stalfos dagger could have poe poison on it. If she turns pale in the least, keep her warm. That means the poison is spreading and slowly taking her life away. But poes can't stand heat. I'm going to the market to find some herbs..."

Fauna paused. "C-c-can I borrow some rupees?"

"Sure." Link handed her fourty rupees, Fauna thanked him, and then rushed off.

At the market, she didn't exactly find what she was looking for, but she found herbs that could help. The market was nearly empty, but luckily, she found an herb and potion shop. Fauna had to use all of her borrowed rupees to buy the herbs. Then she hurried back, made a mixture and then applied it to the wound and rewrapped it.

The girl coughed and shivered. "W-who is there?"

"It's me...Fauna and Link."

"Why is it so cold in here?"

"Link is about to start a fire, don't worry. We made it. Is it alright if we..._I_...tell you something?"

"...sure."

"Thank you."

"Thank you!?"

"For letting me ride with you, for taking care of that stalfos, for being brave...for actually..." Fauna's voice faltered. The girl finally opened her eyes and saw Fauna weeping.

"W-why are you crying?" She asked hoarsely.

"Y-You could have died! I thought you only cared for yourself and yet you...potentially saved my life. I might not be here with out you, and I might not have been able to help my lost friend!" Fauna wailed. The girl did not seem happy to hear Fauna wailing.

"Calm down Fauna!" She said, a weak cough came from her. "It's fine. Father always said I had to be brave. And besides...that was in the past. Can we be friends?"

Fauna stopped and wiped her eyes. "Really?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Oh...good."

"It was nice meeting you, and I hope you find your friend...Fauna..."

"Thank you..."

"Eve."

"Thank you, Eve."

* * *

**No one cried because of that, right? And now you have the name of the girl that looks and seems just like Malon. Topaz is Mercury's sister? She knows of Hetia already? She met Zelda? Why is Link headed to Hyrule Castle? Next time, next chapter!  
**

**Edit: So many errors! But I fixed them so don't worry... Don't forget to vote in the poll on my profile! I have a bunch of great ideas but I want to know which I should do first!**

**Three votes - A Link Between Earth (obviously LoZ)**

**Two votes: Secret Power (MLP)**

**One vote - Revenge (SWR), Another Crew (SWR)!**

**I need a total of five votes on one story to begin! So whether you just started reading or not...vote! Even if I don't get five, the one with the most - or two, or three - I'll get started on ASAP!**

**Yours truly,**

_AuthorPen11_


	25. Finally Getting Somewhere

**Since it wasn't my week to update this story, this is really late. But nevertheless 'Happy 4th of July and Independence day!'**

**Vote! Vote! Vote! Five votes are needed for one of the stories on my poll to be started! The poll is on my profile page, so just scroll up and click my username and you should see at the top of the page or...something is wrong. If you have any questions about this story or Jingle (a Star Wars Rebels fanfic)...PM me! **

**Legendoffun -** _Thanks for catching my errors :) some of them are just missing a letter or two, or just plain old don't make sense, but I appreciate you being here to catch "'em all". I'm glad you are liking the story so far, because we only have about 2 to 5 chapters or so before the last part of the story (which will probably have really long chapters and take forever to finish. Thanks for reviewing!  
_

**Libby8980 -** _Well, thank you for that! I don't know what I could live without (seeing your review, or just knowing that you enjoy the story), but your reviews really brighten up my day! I can see that somethings seem this way or that, but I like how you can easily get used to change :) Your kindhearted reviews are really appreciated._

**For those who have followed and favorited, I thank you, and I also thank Irene T447 for straightening things up earlier in the story so this wasn't a slight crossover. Thanks to Cigs98, Northern Auroria, Charvx, Mossfire946, Legendoffun, and Libby8980 for your follows and favorites :) (You'll probably be seeing this at the end too..., but I just wanted to thank everyone now :'D)  
**

**Well, I don't exactly have time for tears right now because...on with the story!**

* * *

**Chapter 25  
**

It was strange. Finally having her body back and not having someone else sharing it with her. It made her feel...lonely. But what confused Kiara the most was why she was always sick every time Topaz was with her. She felt so...weak...and burning hot...like she couldn't get away from this...fire. Getting fed up with her small cell, Kiara started to search about for something to get her out. _It's a shame I don't have any magic. I'd probably just burn a hole in the cell or teleport outside and place a clone inside, or just...ugh, forget it, nothing is going to happen anytime soon. _

"How do you like your cell?" Kiara looked up to see a lady staring at her. The only thing that bothered Kiara, was her wicked grin. Of course Kiara had seen people with red eyes, true Sheikah had them. In the tribe, you could easily tell if you were one hundred percent sheikah, and would inherit a lot of knowledge and power just by your red eyes. Having brown or blue meant something else. Orange was only about ninety percent. Purple...was odd. Green usually meant you wouldn't excel, but to Kiara, she couldn't tell the difference just because of their eyes.

"You don't talk much...do you?" She asked, circling her cage. Kiara just glared at her.

"Tell me, how is the village faring? Last I heard, it was burnt down to the ground...with everyone in it."

Kiara bit her lip. It might and might not be true, but she didn't want to say that there were still survivors - because that might not be true. Ruthlessly people would just go back and hunt them all down because of foolish mistakes like that.

"Not the talkative type, I see. Well," at this she narrowed her eyes, "I'm going to make _sure _that they are gone, and everyone on the other side of those mountains. Then, Hyrule will be all alone. None of their diplomatic messengers have made it to the neighboring countries, so they won't have anyone else but themselves. Meanwhile, Hyrule will be broken down to smithereens and I shall rule over the dust of those accursed hylians."

This confused Kiara, and she couldn't help but ask, "so you aren't hylian?"

"No! I am not. I...I am part of the White Lighting Warriors, the ones that shall replace the sheikah rejects and the hylian snobs."

"So all those innocent people will be caught in the crossfire...you're horrible!"

"Eh, a couple thousand lives are no matter to me, if they refuse to join, well I could care less about their fates. I see that we've finally sparked a conversation. As for you..._Kiara_, I'll be having you as one of the trophies on my wall. _Sheikah reject _or _The last Sheikah Female __Failure_. I'm saving 'Last Sheikah Female' for another prize. Impa."

Kiara shuddered. "Couldn't you just take your weird self elsewhere - no, keep it to yourself! I think you're disgusting."

She snorted, "whatever." With a quick spin, she turned tail and left the dark room that Kiara was inside.

_Ugh...this place smells absolutely horrible. I wish I could get out, at least._

* * *

Chad's head hurt horribly. The only thing he could see...was darkness. In a few moments, his eyes started to focus. His vision went from black to gray to red to normal. His pounding headache started to subside too.

"Dark magic...just...how?" Chad groaned and grabbed his head. It still felt a bit fuzzy, but as the images before his eyes started to straighten out, he could make out Impa pacing back and forth. She stopped when she noticed that Chad was awaken. She narrowed her eyes.

"How did you learn dark magic?"

"I...I forget. Not exactly sure." Chad said, scratching his head, "did I fall?"

Impa didn't reply, just sat down in a nearby chair and started thinking. "So why are you here?"

"Well, the village was attacked by some bandits and it was set on fire, and well...I came to get your help for supplies and medical kits. The thing is, no one is in really good condition. And then me and Fauna got lost and Kiara or Topaz, or whoever she was then and there, kept getting sick, so we sep-"

"You _separated?_"

"Well, 'Topara' was slowing us down. And not only that, she got captured, so Fauna has to find her and I came here to let you know -"

"I want to know what made you think it was a good idea to _separate? _That makes you both easy targets to your enemies."

"Well I'm sorry, but Fauna is long gone and I have no idea where she is, not only that, but we had two different objectives that needed to be done at the same time _and _we also have some problems of our own that I would not care to explain."

"Oh never mind. How's the village?"

"I don't know! I haven't been back there in the past week and it took me forever to actually get here!"

"Well...this is just splendid."

"Yeah, what do you plan on doing? Because I really need to find something I can use to help the village and find Fauna."

"Something tells me that you will see your friend real soon..." Impa mumbled.

* * *

It was good that Eve was recovering. She was still a little pale, but she wasn't as sick as she was last night. Eve really was tough. By morning, she was almost over the poison. But that wound was going to be a scar, and Fauna doubted it would ever fade. Since Fauna already ate breakfast and Eve said she was fine, Fauna decided to chat with Link. _If _he felt like chatting.

"So...Link...how did you know that I came to Hyrule?"

"Well, it's a bit obvious Fauna, those tattoos. I mean, I'm sure you could have hid them with magic..."

'_Shoot! I could have! And saved us all that arguing...'_

"Oh...yeah."

"You know. My friend's guardian has tattoos that look a bit like yours."

"Really? Impa?"

Link nodded.

"...Princess Zelda is your friend? Is that why you are in Hyrule?"

Link gave me a nod in response.

"Just a normal visit?"

Link shrugged. Apparently, Link didn't feel like chatting anymore. Fauna got up.

"Well I guess today would be good-bye. I really have to find my friend."

"Maybe Zelda could help you. Besides, you could probably use some help. I mean...maybe a change of clothes or a map or something." Link said, eying Fauna's dusty appearance. Fauna had to admit, she hadn't had time or the privacy to change into her clean clothes. And she wasn't sure if they were still clean anymore.

"I guess I should visit Princess Zelda. Maybe Chad isn't there yet, and then I could save him some -"

"Fauna!"

Fauna nearly had a heart attack at her name being called like that, and Link jumped up, and pulled out his sword. They spun around to see...

_Chad and Impa?_

* * *

_If only I could find a way to break this lock...  
_

Kiara leaned against the metal cage.

_Magic, a key...something...it would be nice._

Kiara didn't see her hand start to glow from orange to red. Then she felt the strange, sickening heat from the past week. And all of a sudden, she was engulfed in flames!

"Aiyee!" Kiara let out a screech as she slowly floated off the ground. Then the fire disappeared and she dropped back down. It was strange. Kiara was glowing a dark orange. When she snapped her fingers, a small spark flew to the floor. Then Kiara started to feel the ground weaken. It broke and she fell. Apparently the metal cage had melted. A few inches off the ground, Kiara was suspended by the magic flames. Then they disappeared and Kiara fell on the ground with a loud thud. Instead of her normal clothes, she was dressed in a light red dress with an orange sash and black boots. There was something holding up her hair, and when she felt it, there was a ribbon in her hair.

_Well this is strange, but I better run before -_

"HEY! I leave for _one _moment and look what happens...the rodent escapes!" Kiara looked about for the voice, but she couldn't find it anywhere.

"Show yourself!"

The only thing Kiara saw was a lantern flicker. Then she heard it cackle again.

"Heh, heh. Can't see me, can you? Well, now is...time to get you back in your cage!" It hissed.

Kiara had this strange feeling that was telling her to dodge various attacks she couldn't see. Watch_ out at twelve o'clock? OKAY!_

Kiara dove out of the way where 'twelve' would be, and she saw one of the lamps get lit by the _lantern_.

_So that's where it is...the lantern...it's a poe? Oh! All I need to do is break the lamp? But how...of course! My magic fire attack!_

By this time, the lantern was coming towards her. Kiara snapped her fingers, but nothing happened.

_Ugh...never mind. I better bail and find Topaz, she has to be here somewhere!_

Kiara felt as if something was tugging her in a certain direction. She rushed off where she felt that she needed to go. She looked over her shoulder and saw that the lantern was still following her. She ran faster and went around many corners, but didn't seem to shake it off her trail. Then she skidded to a stop. She nearly ran into...Hetia?

Hetia jumped.

"What the-?" She began, but Kiara moved. The poe was right on her trail and she had an idea to shake it off her. A new target. Kiara dove underneath her and rushed on. She heard a scream behind her, but it only spurred her to run faster, not look behind her. Kiara finally stopped at a heavily locked door. Kiara held up the lock. How to open it was the new problem...now that she was sure she lost the poe.

_I know there is a key for it...but where? And why doesn't my magic work? I mean..._

Kiara snapped her fingers until her hand was on fire. Trying her best not to panic, Kiara grabbed the lock and watched it slowly melt in her grasp. It sure made thing easier. Kiara snapped her fingers again and her hand returned back to normal. Kiara snapped her fingers once again and a small flame lit in the palm of her hand. Kiara pushed the door open and stepped inside.

"Topaz? Topaz are you here?"

"...Kiara? What are you doing here? You shouldn't be-"

"in here." Another voice continued for Topaz. The lights came on and Kiara covered her eyes so she wouldn't be stunned. She looked again to see the same woman who was talking to her earlier. "Now I wonder how you got out of your cage? Perhaps the red orb has something to do with that..."

"Red orb? What red orb?"

"Perhaps Topaz hasn't given you the full story. But you'll know soon enough."

* * *

**Ugh. There is no way I'm putting my other stories on a schedule again. Especially since I was kind of suffering from writer's block, but my mind was saying 'you need to update AP11, can't let everyone down!'. I've noticed that just updated it is enough, so I'll be glad when this story is over.  
**

**Still need some votes for the next story! And if you like Star Wars Rebels, check out my other story 'Jingle'!**

**Hope you enjoyed reading this,**

**Yours Truly,**

**AuthorPen11**


	26. The Secrets We Kept

**It's a wonderful day! I got rid of a fanfic I was planning on writing because it was terrible, plan on rewriting another, catching up on my shows and writing this chapter at the SAME time! Brilliant! Now time to answer reviews. But first, thank you Cakemaster7000 for following and favoriting, it means a lot! Please review when you get the chance :)  
**

**Legendoffun -** _Well...it fit! No, you're kidding. There's NO way there wasn't a single error when I didn't even work so hard to make sure there was no errors...wait...you aren't joking...! Yes! But there's no way you need to feel down, you'll find some this chapter - I guarantee it (not that I'm doing it on purpose). Yeah, you deserve it :P Especially after you didn't update ISP...har har.  
_

**Libby8980 -** _Glad you like it! Can't wait for your next review! I hope you'll enjoy this chapter just as much as I do._

* * *

**Chapter 26  
**

"Chad?! Are you alright?" Fauna asked, deeply surprised to see him. "And..." Fauna bowed, "Lady Impa."

"Forget the formalities," Impa said quickly, "do you have any idea where your friend is?"

Fauna nodded. "I've found a trail, but kinda of went on..." Fauna hesitated, "another adventure."

"I see." Impa said, giving a small glance in Link's direction. By now, he had put away his sword, but he still gave Chad a wary look.

"Oh, Chad! I didn't introduce you yet. This is Link." Chad stiffened.

"...his name is Link?"

Link glared. "His name _does _happen to be Link." There was a short awkward silence.

"Err...nice to meet you Link." Chad said, dusting himself off. "Anyways, you said you were on a trail. We should immediately start searching for Ki..Ki...hi." Chad looked a little uneasy, and his face slowly became a light shade of pink. Fauna spun around to see Eve up and about.

"Eve! You really shouldn't be up! You should be resting!" Fauna commanded, "after that fiasco yesterday, you should be in bed for about a week, regardless of the healing spell!"

"I know...but...there was such a racket, I just _had _to see what was going on." Fauna sighed.

"Well, sorry." Fauna turned back around to face the group. "I minds as well introduce you to my friend, Chad. Chad, this is Eve. Eve, this is Chad." Instead of doing anything, Chad remained spellbound by her presence. After a long glare from Fauna, he snapped out of it.

"Uhm, uh, hi." Eve gave a faint smile before sitting down beside Link. Chad seemed to get a bit aggravated by this, but he didn't say anything.

"Well, if you have the trail, we have to get right on it." Impa pressed, looking about to make sure no one was trying to eavesdrop. She lowered her voice. "Something big is going to happen. Even the princess knows it. Perhaps...perhaps if we were to rescue your friend, I could find out whether it is connected to her or something else. Something...bigger."

"Bigger...what?" Fauna questioned.

"War."

* * *

Kiara stood glued to her spot. What did she mean by the _full story_? Topaz had told her everything about how it came to be that they were two souls in one body. The lady seemed happy that Kiara didn't decide to object and make the story take longer to explain. She used some type of magic to close the door behind Kiara and then smiled.

"When Mercury and Topaz were born, they were twins who would possess great power. I saw them as the two warriors who would take over the land and rule as the prince and princess. And I...their queen. I was their eldest sister, and between me and them was two girls and a small boy. But you see, they intended to teach you pointless things, not how to rule a kingdom and fight. After a while, I managed to convince one of them to my side to show them how we rule over the lands as empresses, I, empress of the north, and my sister, empress of the south. Yet the other sister decided that this was a horrible idea. She believed we were usurpers and so...during a great festival...she took off with Topaz. Of course, my sister forgot that I was the messenger between the spirits and the living, so under my command, I sent out a group of poes to take her back...dead or alive." She stopped to take a breath before a wicked smile was plastered on her face. "They chose to take her back dead...it was much easier that way. But Topaz was nowhere to be found, so I thought she had drowned her, my chance of power sinking to the bottom of the river with her. But instead, that was not to be."

She moved inbetween Kiara and Topaz and smiled.

"Several uneventful years later, I discovered a young maiden that resembled the child who would give me ultimate power, and who did it happen to be? Topaz! She was alive, and I...I had been forgotten by her. By then, my other sister had died of a disease brought in by a hylian trader. This is what ignited my hatred for the hylians. When I demanded his life in return for peace, the kingdom of Hyrule refused. So I decided to set in motion a grand plan. The extinction of their own royal bodyguards...and with that, they would not be able to protect their heirs, so when they all died, I would rise up to take their place. And after a long check, I believed that is exactly what happened." She turned towards Kiara with a pitying look. "I could find no sign of any soul on the other side of the mountains."

Kiara fought back tears and glared at her. "How would you even know we existed there? How would you have gotten there?"

A wicked smile on her face appeared, "ah...I was once a sheikah. I had gone under the name Lyeya, but it seems they have gotten rid of my name from the history books. I was a great warrior, but they banished me for using dark magic. Unbeknowst to them, I had passed on some of my great dark magic to two other children. My younger brother...and a promising child. In fact, she was _there_ before the catastrophe that consumed your _precious _village."

Kiara gasped. "What? Who?"

"Why...I believe you knew her?!" The lady looked quite amused by the befuddled Kiara. She smiled, "there's no reason you need to be introduced, I'm sure you will recognize her. Charna!"

_'Charna? Who...'_ Kiara trailed, turning towards a small door that opened up. In walked a girl with pale skin. She had short, raven dark hair and red eyes. She was adorned in a short red dress with knee high black boots, which Kiara could see, surprisingly. She stopped once she was inside the room and the door shut behind her. Kiara's eyes widened in recognition, and she managed to choke out a few words.

"T-that child you passed your magic onto was..._Nova_?"

* * *

"War?! That's ridiculous!" Eve interjected, "all of the countries roundabout are bound by a treaty to Hyrule!"

"All but Termina and the islands that are beyond it." Impa quickly replied. "But I don't believe that it will come to that...hopefully. But nevertheless, we can continue our discussion elsewhere. All of you must come with me to the princess so we can discuss this." Since no one objected, they headed to the castle.

...**A short time later**...

Eve, Chad, Impa, Fauna, Link, and Princess Zelda were all assembled in a private room. It wasn't silent though, because once they arrived, Link and Zelda started a small conversation about something, and once that died down Impa finally managed to get everyone's attention.

"Princess," Impa said, "these are the two of the three you saw in your dreams, are they not?" She motioned towards Chad and Fauna. Princess Zelda nodded.

"They are. But where is the third? Has she fallen ill?"

Fauna hesitated, not quite sure if it was directed towards her or Impa. But when Impa didn't reply, Fauna looked at Zelda. "Last time we were together...she was sick." Fauna looked away, trying not to remember the frustration and anger she had felt towards Chad. "I was on my way to find her, but I was...side-tracked."

Chad gave her a questioning glance, but didn't push for answers. Zelda continued.

"So that's what delays her. Impa, you were saying that a war could arise because of...children?" Chad flinched.

_She's calling us children, she's probably only a few years older than me._ Chad thought, _and yet she calls us children. No, we are not children. We are the Warriors of the Sheikah Tribe. **Sheikah Warriors**._

"Actually, they can look out for themselves very well. If they couldn't, they wouldn't be here." Impa quickly said, much to the relief of Chad. It was one thing to have royalty insult you, but when you weren't of the same status, insulting back would be...well...awkward and rude. Though...insulting _anyone _is just rude.

"Well, if that's the case, Impa, you must find their last companion. Perhaps...perhaps there shall be no war."

"With luck, there may still be bright days ahead. But I still see a large dark cloud looming by the horizon." Impa said, getting up. In about ten minutes, the matter had been settled. Impa would accompany Fauna and Chad to find their friend (Kiara), while Eve stayed to recuperate and Link visited Zelda.

* * *

"Nova?! What are you doing here? Is the village alright? Get help!" Kiara shouted, flailing her arms in an attempt to get Nova moving. But she didn't move at all. There was a strange glint in her eyes. Kiara gulped, "what have you done to her?"

"Gave her a new choice. You may have noticed, that because you were set in the group with this _Chad _a great rift in friendship had been created. Separated from her friends, she began to lose hope and the will to live. But I...I!" She stopped, taking in another breath, "it was _I _who promised her a place where she would be accepted, where her dreams could come true and she could live anyway she wanted...that is...under the covenant. She would no longer become a sheikah and bear those horrible tattoos..she would become part of the Shadow Warriors, a new group that would rise to bring balance to Hyrule and the outlying lands. Or...maybe in a couple of years...New Shyun."

"...New...Shyun? Do you mean to replace the fruitful, peace-loving people of Hyrule?"

"Insolent fool! Have you heard nothing I told you! I _despise _the land of Hyrule! I have already found out what percentage of the population that is with me. Those who will not shall not be killed...they shall become slaves and live in a place where they are separated and cut off from the rest of civilization."

"The other side of the mountains." Kiara and her chorused.

"My...my home...you are going to ruin that land and make it a slave land?!" Kiara was enraged. Instead of being rooted to the spot, she felt color rising to her cheeks.

_Me...a girl who was born in a sheikah village, destroyed, and only for the land to be repurposed for innocent people made into slaves to live._

"This will never happen!" Kiara roared. "And I don't see how this has anything to do with Topaz!"

"Oh, but it has _everything _to do with her. Mercury and Topaz were part of the Shadow Warriors. In fact, if you haven't seen it, the four circles on her forehead means that she belongs to the Shadow Clan. She was _born _part of it, and shall _forever_ remain part of it. Everywhere I went, I have dubbed these people part of the Shadow Clan, and they shall have plenty of privileges when I become queen and rule over New Shyun."

Kiara clenched her fist and squeezed her eyes shut. _None of this is true...Topaz told you all she knew...she doesn't know of this..._ Kiara looked at Topaz, but she avoided her gaze and kept her head low. But Kiara could see it now. The mark was hiding right underneath Topaz' bangs.

"So it's true..." Kiara trailed, tears welling in her eyes, "you aren't what you say you are...you're not even on our side..." A lone tear slipped down Kiara's cheek before others followed. Kiara sniffed and wiped her eyes. "I came in here for nothing. I'm leaving." But as Kiara made her way towards the door, Charna (Nova) got in front.

"Not so fast Kiara. All you have heard will never reach the outside world. That is...until Hyrule becomes New Shyun, and you agree to join the Shadow Clan. For now, you shall remain in here."

"Nova, I thought you were my friend!" Kiara shouted, getting extremely frustrated with the turn of events. _First Nova shows up, but doesn't turn out to be on my side, then it turns out that everything Topaz told us isn't true. _

A sly grin formed on "Nova's" face. Then there was a evil glint in her eyes. "To tell you the truth, Kiara...I never really liked you." She started taking a few steps toward her, "in fact, I _hated _you."

* * *

Fauna pulled out the amulet and began dowsing again. She felt a strong pull towards somewhere west of the castle. As the sun set Impa turned towards Fauna and Chad.

"Your journey has obviously been long and hard. I suggest you rest at Hyrule Castle or a nearby inn - if you already booked a room - before setting out at sunrise. Don't worry about your supplies, I'll get started on packing for you."

"That's very kind, Impa, but the princess..." Fauna trailed

"Totally agrees with Impa." Princess Zelda said as she stepped in the room. "I believe it would be good for you to rest before setting out on another adventure."

Chad and Fauna exchanged glances.

"And what about the village? Will any relief supplies be sent there?"

"They have already been sent. Though...they had to swear never to reveal the location. They were _specifically _chosen for their skills and attitude." Impa reassured. Again, Chad and Fauna exchanged glances.

"Well?" Princess Zelda asked.

"Well...? Well what?" Fauna questioned.

"Well, did you have anything planned?"

"Actually," Fauna bit her lip, then continued, "I hadn't planned any reservations. We were hoping to return as a party back home with the supplies but..."

"But? But what?" Princess Zelda pressed. Fauna gave an amused look towards Chad. _Is she mocking me?_

"But after Kiara had been taken, the plan...went off schedule." Fauna said, not wanting to bring up the touchy subject of the fight.

"Ah, I see. Let's get you to your rooms. I'm sure you are exhausted." Princess Zelda said, smiling. The group turned around and walked back inside the castle.

* * *

"_Hate me_?! What have I done that deserves your hate?"

"You have always been in the way, always messing up plans...I wanted to move things along easier, give Chad some time to make a decision...but no...you had to eavesdrop, and so, there wasn't a moment I could tell him anything. A moment I couldn't tell him of the destiny we shared together."

"Destiny you shared with Chad? What in Hyrule do you mean by that?"

"Haven't you pieced the two together yet? Are you really as stupid as Lady Hyruna believes?"

'_Lady Hyruna? That is her name? Ah...so Nova has fallen under Lady Hyruna's commands and rules and so she opposes me. She never was on my side. And I thought we could be friends._

"For you information," Kiara retorted, "I am a smart girl and I am sure you are too. You are wasting your life and potential under this 'Lady'. You are on the road to folly and failure. There is no way Hyrule will fall and this 'land' that you'll call New Shyun prosper. It will be the end of the world as you waste lives in a battle that shall never make headway. And you..._Nova_. You will fall at the hands of someone who realizes that what you and your mistress wish for is not right. In fact, by the goddesses, you will make this prosperous land cursed."

"Such strong words from a foolish girl." Lady Hyruna laughed. Her eyes twinkled in amusement. "Such brutal thinking. Do you mean to think that a war will occur, with the land of Hyrule in the middle of a jubilee year?" She laughed, "they are as smart as the fools and fake wizards. They merely celebrate and party, and for generations, the one lady who could lead them out of their horrid cycle, dies every time she gives birth to a girl. The Princess _Zelda_? Have you not seen the cycle in history? Her mother is the wise one, but every time, she dies because of a _difficult birth_ or something else to prevent her from helping Zelda become a capable ruler. She...she is a fool who will sit on the throne. She knows nothing of war and the difficulties that shall be pressed upon her precious people, if she dare refuse to hand over the throne."

Kiara clenched and unclenched her fists. Although Lady Hyruna had made a point, Kiara refused to believe that Princess Zelda was not a capable ruler. In fact, how could she not be, if she inherited the triforce of wisdom?

"And I don't see how you'll ever be able to control Hyrule anyways." Kiara spat.

"Oh silly girl, my iron grip will squeeze out the folly and foolishness that resides on this ripe land. And I have the power to do that." Lady Hyruna laughed, as she showed her hand. On the back of it was the triforce, and the top triangle glowed. "Because I...own the triforce of power."

* * *

**Dun dun dun! And everything is coming together! I can't wait until I get to the best part of the story - the end! But nope! This will probably be...SPOILER!...a sequel! And as much as I would love to get started on that next, I believe I have a story to get started on. **

**A Link Between Earth! (Though I don't have five votes yet.) **

**This will -not!- be the last time I say this, but there is a poll on my page for the next story I should write. Although I have already written 'Jingle', that is a spur-of-the-moment fanfic. If I have extra time I update that. But there is another Legend of Zelda fanfic that I hope to write...A Link Between Earth! And I want to try something out...a collab! If you are interested I will send in the plot and if you like it, I will send in the document by DocX or PM. Either is fine, but DocX is preferred.  
**

**In the poll, I need at least five votes, but the one that has the most when I finish this will be started next - A Link Between Earth -. The sequel to this story shall be arranged later, and if need be, I might ask for a beta-reader ;) Other than this overflowing fountain of news, I must begin working on my Star Wars Rebels (SWR) fanfic: Jingle - my wild attempt at following the series by an OC's P.O.V while mixing humor in the fray! - Hope you enjoyed this chapter and plz review!**

**Yours truly,**

**AuthorPen11**


	27. I'm Sorry

***GROAN*. I really need to get over my 'Case of the Plotbunnies' and focus on my real story here...I guess I'm suffering from excitement of ending stories and possible sequels...other than that...I feel like I need to do something with these random writer's block cases I have...perhaps...a break? Naw, I want to send in another chapter before the school year starts and everyone gets busy. Personally, I'll be flopping on the ground with schoolwork and other things if I don't send this in.  
**

**Note to self: NEVER EVER put a story on a schedule when your conscience won't stop bugging you about sending in chapters on time.**

**Now to reply to reviews.**

**Libby8980 -** _Well, I do have a beta-reader right now, and I can't wait to find out who I'll be 'collabing' with too. Ah, we shall see. We shall see...hope you enjoy this chapter!_

**Legendoffun -** _See! What did I tell you! And the stuff that will be going on between Chad and Link might be examined one time or another. Yep...IF the war starts...I hope to get the next chapter of Jingle up and running before I get up and run off on vacay (finally!). And of course I'll know what that means...I made up the abbreviation -.-_

* * *

**Chapter 27  
**

Kiara stood glued to the spot. After a few seconds passed she finally managed to speak. "That's...that's not possible...only _he _could have the triforce of power..."

"Well, apparently, _you _are wrong. With this power, I will gather up the army to conquer the world!"

"You're nuts. There's no way you'll be able to do that in one year."

Lady Hyruna chuckled. "Of course not! That would be foolish. I need time to watch them all burn down in ashes before I put them out. But I don't have time to tell you anything else." With that, she left the room. Kiara turned her head slightly and looked at Nova, who had been pacing. She stopped, and glared at Kiara.

"As much as I would like to deal with you now, I have something of importance that needs to be done immediately. Colbalt! Ember!" Two poes appeared, "take her away." Nova walked off, leaving Kiara, Topaz and the poes alone. Slowly, the situation hit her. She could try to escape, or possibly rescue Topaz, have some help escaping, and figure out what on Hyrule was going on. Kiara furrowed her eyebrows.

_But why would I need to rescue her? She's already part of that clan. She would only slow me down...but then again, everything Hyruna might be telling me probably isn't all true. I'm sure Topaz can explain all of this. But if she's a traitor..._

Kiara shook away the thoughts and tried to think of a way to escape. _No windows. Doors are probably sealed by magic. The floor...maybe I could make a new door? Or perhaps there's a floor below us. Or...above._

"Stay still." Hissed one of the poes, "it'll be less painful if you don't squirm and make our job harder."

Kiara gulped down some air before snapping her fingers. She was starting to get the hang of the magic fire and was glad to find out that her hand was on fire (for once in her life - Kiara wasn't a fan of being on fire before this moment).

"Back away and I won't attack." Kiara said, trying to summon up some courage. But she could still hear the fear in her voice, and her legs shook.

"Pish, posh, you wouldn't be able to land a single hit." The second poe said, before letting out a small cackle, "you were only a beginner." Kiara glared at it before looking about. _Have to find a way to get rid of these poes...right! The lanterns._

The poes vanished and Kiara was surprised not to see any floating lanterns. Backing up, she felt something scorch her back. Kiara let out a yell before rolling on the floor. _Big mistake_. The wood easily caught aflame and before Kiara knew it, everything was beginning to burn.

"Topaz! Topaz!" Kiara looked around frantically for the metal cage, but the smoke made her eyes burn and they began to water, making everything much harder to see. Kiara tripped on something but caught herself in time. "Topaz where are-"

"I'm over here!" She heard a raspy voice. Kiara turned towards the voice and crawled towards it. The room was starting to get filled up with smoke and it was getting harder and harder to breath. When Kiara was sure she was beside Topaz she reached out for her. But the only thing she felt was a flimsy robe.

"Huh?" Kiara coughed, her mind trying to register everything that was happening. _Clunk! _Kiara felt searing pain before everything went black.

* * *

"Topaz!" She could hear Kiara calling, but she wanted to preserve as much air as possible. Besides, she was having enough trouble with the lock on her cage. Topaz ran a hand through her hair and sighed. _Think Topaz think! What could you use to get out? _Topaz stopped long enough to look around. Not far from the door, she saw a big ring of keys. In the way, was a burning floor, a few fallen posts, and a couple of various items that had been lit by the out-of-control blaze. Topaz coughed. The only was she could get there was if she could move the cage. In a moment, Topaz had an idea. She rocked back and forth in the cage before it fell over. She was sure she would have a good sized bump, but she couldn't worry about it now.

Slowly, Topaz began to roll the cage towards the ring of keys. First, she had to roll over the fallen posts, which wasn't very easy. They were thick and huge, and rolling over the top involved a few burnt fingers. But through the pain and smoke, Topaz kept on rolling. She had just gotten in reach of the keys when they levitated in the air. Then a poe reappeared.

"Oh, hello! I didn't see you there? Were you possibly trying to escape?"

"Are you crazy! At least move me where I won't be burned to death!" The poe stopped to consider. When it made up its mind, it started to chuckle.

"Well, I don't believe she would know that. Probably think you lit the whole place a flame so you could have a quick death instead of dealing with her fury. Besides, who wants you to be a ruler? You're weak and nothing but a traitor, so you can die with one too!" It screamed before vanishing. The way Topaz knew it was leaving, was by the jingle of keys. In a moment though, it faded and Topaz could hear the crackling of burning wood and the heat of the roaring flame.

_Great, just great...where's Kiara? She has to be around here somewhere..._

Topaz searched about frantically for any sign of Kiara, but all she saw was smoke and flames dancing up the curtains. Slowly, Topaz started to backtrack.

"Kiara! Kiara where are you!"

* * *

_The heat was unbearable and his throat was horribly dry. Pain. Pain and the horrid heat. 'Where are you!' The words kept being repeated, but there was only darkness. _

Chad woke up with a start. It was still dark out, but Chad couldn't get himself to relax. It was so vivid...so..._real_. His head throbbed, and when he felt it, his hair was sticking to his head out of sweat. But Chad couldn't figure it out. What was he dreaming about? The village? The future? The past?

Chad slipped out of bed and opened the window. Despite the chilly air he still felt hot. His mind was a fuzz, but when he was able to clear it out, he knew he wasn't alone. Turning around, he saw...Nova?

Chad nearly fell out the window. Instead, he quickly shut it and locked the door.

"What are you doing here? Are you alright? Where have you been?" He hissed, trying to keep his voice as low as possible. "And what's with the new hairstyle?"

She sighed. "Chad...there's something you need to know."

"What? Is it about Kiara? Please tell me you found her!"

Nova looked away. She glanced back at the door before looking at the floor. "I...Chad...listen. It's really important, and I only have a few moments before I have to go. You see...I...I'm...I'm no longer a sheikah."

"What!? What on-" Nova covered his mouth and glared.

"Hush! What are you trying to do? Get me caught! I'm not even supposed to be here! I came to tell you this as fast as I can because I only have a few moments. My name is no longer Nova, it's Charna and I'm not a sheikah. I found Kiara and Topaz." She stopped to let it sink in.

"What? Where!"

"There's an old library only a few miles from Kakariko village and one mile northwest of Colligan Town. The building is on fire, and the last place I know of when I spotted Kiara."

"Let's go then!" Chad said, jumping up and grabbing his bag.

"Chad! Stop! You can't! There's a barrier on the building. All those that get in can't go out! You'll be stuck in there, and there's also a magic-surpressing spell on the place. Any magic being cast would take a lot of energy and the place is already up in flames! It would be your death sentence!"

"It doesn't matter! Every sheikah's life is important and I have to get them out of there! It's the only way she could possibly survive!"

"Chad I don't care! You can't go! Anyone else but you! You have a bright future ahead and..." she stopped and looked away again. "Chad...don't..."

"I'm sorry Nova, but no one else would make it there quicker than me. If you won't help me, I'll go myself."

"Chad don't!" She grabbed his arm. "Don't go Chad! It's not safe! You might not survive!"

"I don't care!" He shouted, wrenching his arm out of her grasp and disappearing. Nova sunk down on the floor and started to weep.

_He can't go...he'll never make it out alive! Why did I tell him? He'll risk his life going in there just to save them. I have to find him before he goes in. _Jumping up, Charna (Nova) disappeared, and a second later, the door opened. Eve stood there.

"Chad? Chad? Where did you go?" She scanned the room, the only thing she saw was ruffled sheets and that the curtains had been pulled back. Eve walked in the middle of the room and looked about. "I have to get Fauna." She muttered, before running out.

**.:A Few Moments Later:.**

Eve burst into Fauna's room, only wincing when she remember her injury from the Stalfos only a few days earlier.

"Fauna!" Eve squeaked, rushing over to her bed and shaking her awake, "you have to get up! Chad's gone!" Fauna sprang awake, accidentally hitting Eve in the head with her own. "Ouch!" Eve jumped, backing up. She held her now throbbing head and winced. Fauna groaned, before turning towards Eve.

"What do you mean "he's gone"?" Fauna asked, slipping out of bed and standing up.

"I mean that his room is empty, and someone was in there! They said they knew where this 'Kiara and Topaz' was. They're in an abandoned library about a mile from Colligan Town. And then a moment later he got upset with the person. I don't know how he got out without me seeing him, but he's gone!"

Fauna nodded and quickly slipped a cloak over her body and grabbed her satchel. They hurried out the room and rushed to Chad's room. Fauna walked about the room and stopped when she noticed some ashes in the middle of the room. _That's odd. If it was a fire, there probably would have been a scorched floor, or the floor would be wet, or it would smell a bit like smoke for the ring of ashes to be this big. Unless...dark magic? Could they possibly have taken Chad? _

"Eve, get Princess Zelda and Impa and tell them that Chad's gone and I'm going after them. If they say I shouldn't be up tell them its an emergency and he might have been taken and I had to go." Fauna said quickly, before dashing out of the room. She hurried down the stairs until she was in the main room. _Ugh, I'll have to find the magic signatures immediately and follow, but dowsing hasn't worked very well. Thank goodness Eve happened to check on him, or this might possibly take about ten hours just to work this out._

Fauna hurried towards the kitchen and packed a bag filled with food and a couple of water skins before hurrying towards the stables. She grabbed the one she thought the fastest and saddled it up and tied the bag of food securely on before hopping up. But it didn't budge. Instead, it let out a loud neigh and launched Fauna off.

"Hey! I'm trying to save a friend! Sorry if it looks like I'm horse-napping you but I promise to return you as soon as possible. Now could you _please _cooperate? Please!"

"Hey! What's going on in here?" Fauna heard. She jumped up and grabbed a few apples off the shelf and fed it to the horse.

"Please..." she whispered, rubbing its nose and hopping back into the saddle. This time it obeyed and trotted out of the stable, but not before the stable guy spotted her.

"Hey! Stop theif!" He hollered, but Fauna had already got the horse off at a full speed gallop. Clinging onto the horse's mane they rushed through the courtyard and before Fauna knew it, the horse had cleared the gate. It wasn't very silent though. The hollering of the stable guy woke up the guards and they were on their horses while a few guards on the outside opened the gates. She moved the horse towards the path that would lead to Kakariko village and then slowed it down to a trot.

* * *

Nova reappeared outside Colligan Town and rushed towards the burning library. The town was deserted after a great fire about three years before and no one wanted to settle once they heard that it was haunted by poes, and in the third hour of the night, you could hear a child's ear-piercing scream. Looking around the outside of the building, she stopped at the barrier. It was invisible, but she knew where it was...since she cast the spell. When you passed inbetween the two trees that 'stand guard' you have passed into it and it would only wear out in twenty-fours hours.

Nova grabbed a stick and starting right out a poem that she was sure would stop people and make them think long enough before possibly getting themselves trapped.

Nova stopped. She didn't want to finish the poem she wrote, for the word that rhymed with 'spell' wasn't pretty. Nova stepped back and made sure that someone would be able to read it. For safe measures, she engraved it on a rock and dropped it in the middle of the road. No one would be able to miss it then. Backing away she looked about. She could see the flames dancing about on the other side, but it was still hadn't spread onto the grass. The fire would die, but the damage would be done. By the time Chad would arrive, Kiara would be dead. And even if he wanted to go check it out, Nova would stop him. She had too.

* * *

Chad appeared outside a small town that was eerily quiet. Ignoring his fear, he hurried towards a blaze he saw on the outskirts. It had to be the library Nova was talking about. He hurried as fast as he could towards the blazing building. In a few moments, he was outside the building. But he stopped at a large rock that had words engraved in it. Squinting in the dark, he read,

_'A library used to remain here,  
__But as you can see, it disappeared because of me.  
__Burnt down to the ground but encased by the spell,  
It was here that a blossoming friendship fell._

_Inbetween these two trees a library stood,  
But none remain behind it now,  
The same that happened here happened to the town,  
And now the only thing that remains is Colligan Woods._

_Do you wish to look about and see?  
Do you want to know what happened to me?  
It was I who cast the spell,  
__Encasing those inside of int__o'_

_Into what? _Chad furrowed his eyebrows and thought about it. Everything rhymed right up to here. Then he stopped. Of course. _That's just awful. But I have to find what to do to save them. _He walked around the stone and was about to walk in when he felt himself get pushed away from it.

"Chad you aren't going!" He looked over his shoulder to see 'Nova' standing there. He growled at her.

"Let me go, this isn't your decision!"

"Yes it is! Chad you can't go! I won't let you go!"

"And I won't let my friends die because you restrained me!"

"Do you really want to go to where the words on the rock tell you about?! Chad, you won't survive very long in there!"

"I'll survive long enough to save them."

"No you won't! They're probably already dead! Besides, Topaz isn't who she says she is. She isn't your friend!"

"And how do I know that? How do I not know that you're not my friend neither?"

"We were once friends! Don't you realize I'm trying to do what is best for you?"

"You aren't the one controlling my fate and you shouldn't be holding me back from my own decision."

"Chad, you aren't going in! If you don't want me to hold you back, that's too bad! I'm not letting you go nowhere! I don't care about your decision! You don't belong in there! You have a longer life ahead of you!"

"Let go of me!" Chad shouted.

"No, I won't!" Nova screamed back.

"Well I guess I have to do this the hard way!" Before Chad was able to make the first move, there was a loud explosion which rocked the earth and Chad fell down onto the ground.

* * *

Topaz moved the cage slowly and looked about for Kiara. She stopped when she saw something in the corner of her eye. Rolling slowly towards it, she spotted Kiara unconscious on the floor with a empty lantern lying on the floor beside her. Stopping right beside her, Topaz gingerly picked up a burning stick and started to melt the hinges of the door of the cage. It was slow, back-breaking work, and Topaz wasn't sure how long the air would last. In a moment, she had the doors off and was beside Kiara.

"Kiara! Wake up!" She whispered, shaking her lightly. Lifting up Kiara, she moved the cage to block some of the heat as she moved to the nearest door. But right before she got there, the door was barred by flaming wood. Pushing the giant cage away, Topaz looked for another exit. But the only thing she saw...was a large container of explosive powder in the corner. Her eyes widened and she picked up Kiara, wrapping her in her arms.

"I'm sorry I didn't get to tell you Kiara myself. I'm sorry I let Hyruna explain to you the truth. I ran to the library to escape going back. I didn't want to help her take over Hyrule. I wanted to..." Topaz looked towards the wall with the powder and saw the flames starting to lick the barrel.

"I wanted to say...I'm sorry for not being a real friend."

There was a loud boom and then there was a bright flash of light.

* * *

**Sorry for the sloppiness, this was a last moment chapter. I literally only finished this Wednesday. I hope you can figure. Please vote for the next story I should write and I hope to see you later. Thanks for the 1,000 views!**

**Yours truly,**

_**AuthorPen11**_


	28. The Explosion

**Whew, this took ******a** while to get around too. Never thought I'd be ****_waiting _****on SCW to check my errors before starting but - oh well. What's going on in my life? Nothing much, more of lounging around and trying to write an original story. Oh, and ****_spoiler_****...there's two more chapters after this before it ends. YEP! I'm going to make each book about 30 -45 chapters long. **

**Legendoffun -** _Good to see that you are still there, I'll fix those errors as soon as I can. Try to enjoy this chapter._

**But don't worry,**** there will only be a small gap from where we were last.**

* * *

**Chapter 28  
**

The ground shook and knocked Chad and 'Charna' off their feet, making them fall flat on their faces. Next followed a mute boom and a bright flash of light. When the earth finally stopped quaking, Chad groaned. He felt numb, and his ears hurt. He tried to stand up, but he couldn't balance himself. There were a few scratches on his arms and he felt hoarse.

_What had happened?_

Well now he knew. The building had exploded, possibly killing anyone inside of it, and if it weren't for the barrier...

Chad shuddered.

_Where was Nova? _

His eyes scanned the ground until he saw a body covered in rubble and dust. Scrambling over, he pushed off the accumulation of debris off her before dragging her away. Chad stopped when he saw blood. It was caked with dirt and seemed to have stopped the bleeding wound but it would hurt cleaning it. But what Chad needed to know, was whether she was alive or not. He grabbed her hand and felt for her pulse. He sighed when he found it, but it was a little weak. She'd need medical attention immediately. Then the ground started the shake slightly. Looking about, Chad saw Fauna galloping towards him.

_Wait...Fauna?_

He rubbed his eyes, but she was still there, and Chad was glad. Surely she could help.

* * *

It happened so fast. A bright flash of light and a great _**BOOM **_erupted from nowhere and then the ground shook and the horse panicked. Fauna was nearly flung off, but she held on for dear life as the pony rushed about at top speed. Finally, when Fauna managed to calm it down, the ground had stop shaking but her eyes were a little sore from the light flash. She was relieved to find out that nothing had fallen and the earth had shifted but Fauna had to hurry. _What had happened to Chad? Was he alright? Was he possibly...dead? _Her thoughts started to eat through her heart and she felt less courage then when she started out.

She was relieved to find that Chad was there, but he didn't look alright, and neither did the person next to him. As she rode up, she was shocked to find _Nova _with Chad. Seeing the injury, Fauna hopped down and pulled out her medical bag.

"Chad? What happened?" She asked, as she soaked a cloth in some water that she had taken with her.

He seemed confused and hadn't seemed to get what she meant so she asked again. He seemed to get it a bit but he shrugged.

"Chad, can you even hear me?" Fauna asked, using sign language. He shook his head.

_That explains it._

Using the cloth, Fauna wiped away the dirt and blood until it looked clean. It started to bleed again so Fauna crunched up some leaves in her hand, poured water on it until it was a thick paste, applied it on her forehead, and wrapped it up with some fresh bandages. Then Fauna tried to wake Nova up. A head injury and being unconscious could be fatal. If she woke up, there was a slim chance she could be still alive, but a little deranged.

* * *

_.:Flashback:._

Nova felt tears swimming in her eyes. _No, Chad couldn't go in there. He didn't know what would happen if he stepped inside the barrier -_

A bright light, followed by a loud crack interrupted her thoughts. Her head started to throb and her eyes widened.

_The barrier! If it were to break -_

A branch came flying from behind and smacked her upside the head before she blacked out. The last thing she felt, was blood oozing from a wound and a loud thumping in her head.

* * *

Fauna looked up and gasped. Where there should have been a building, there was rubble and smoldering flames. Handing Nova over to Chad to look after, she gathered her medical kit and started walking past the large boulder and inside. Fauna squinted. _Was that a small barrier? _Scrambling toward it, she was shocked to see a girl hugging Fauna and tears streaming down her face before laying her on the ground and then she vanished. The barrier disappeared and Fauna felt frozen. _Who was that? _

Collecting her senses, she rushed over to Kiara. She wasn't very wounded, but there was a large bruise on the back of her head. Quickly, Fauna cleaned and applied the paste to her head before wrapping it. Lifting up Kiara, Fauna struggled back to Nova and Chad. Once they were reunited, she laid Kiara down. _Please be alright. _Fauna thought, checking Kiara's pulse. When she didn't feel it in her arm, she searched about. _Was she breathing? Had she come too late? Was she still alive?_

Suddenly, Kiara gasped and gave a loud wheezing cough. She bolted up and looked around before uttering a few raspy words.

"_I forgive you Topaz._"

* * *

Eve rushed out of Fauna's room and started to panic. How would the guards believe what she was saying if they didn't even know who she was? But her prayers were answered when she ran smack into a familiar looking guard clad in green.

"LINK! Oh Link you have to help me!" She squealed. He jumped back in surprise. "It's Chad! He's gone and Fauna went after him and something disastrous is in the air and -" Eve was cut off my a small quaking in the ground. She fell over but Link caught her just in time. After it stopped, Eve stopped to catch a breath.

"What was that?" Link shrugged. In a moment, Impa and Princess Zelda joined them.

"What was that?" Zelda asked Link. Link faced palmed before rolling his eyes. Then he shrugged. '_I have no idea._' He wanted to say, but he knew someone was going to ask -

"What was that?" Impa questioned, "did someone blow up something in the armory again?" Link facepalmed before letting out a groan. '_I give up..._'

Eve was glad to see that Zelda and Impa were fine and started chattering away at what she heard until Impa stopped her.

"What would anyone be doing in Colligan Town?"

"I don't know, but it seems that is what they were talking about and Fauna got a bit worried so she decided to follow Chad and she took one of the horses."

"That explains the upset groom and stable boy." Impa muttered under he breath. "Well, she can't go alone, she doesn't know what she'll run into."

* * *

**Well I kind of got stuck on a standstill so this will be one of my VERY short chapters. I hope to make up for it with the next two - five chapters and try to think of something interesting but I got sidetracked and haven't been home most of the weekend either. Besides, still trying to write my own story based off of this and another one that is totally different and I regretfully say - _I'm suffering from writer's block _\- and I might need and extra week or two once school starts (hopefully I will have finished this story by then. So..yah. Sorry for the short chapter.  
**

**Yours truly...**

_**AuthorPen11...**_


	29. It's All Reaching---

**Actually got an early start writing this one so I'll try to make up for the last chapter.  
**

**Legendoffun -** _Well, school started for me on Monday too. So I'm trying to remember to send in the chapter before I leave. Hope you got everything together now._

**Libby8980 -** _Glad you like the chapter! And I'm pretty sure you'll like the VERY last chapter of this story. Psst...news of -z_

**Now without further ado - (Sheikah Warriors)  
**

* * *

**Chapter 29  
**

Hyruna tapped her fingers impatiently on her throne and waited for her messenger to arrive. Crackle, one of the poes, had come back with news of the old library exploding.

"Humph, it wasn't really worth it now. All the books we could possibly need have been transported. It was just a large house waiting to fall on our heads and crush us all. I'm glad I don't have to knock it down _when I come back_." Her eyes skimmed the room. Dark purple curtains blocked out the light, a few large, glass chandeliers hung from the ceiling, a large, plush carpet adorned the floor. The floors had just been freshly polished and the room could seat about two hundred people - or, creatures of all shapes and sizes.

"So..." Hyruna trailed, "is she taken care of?"

"Uhm, the girl or...the girl?"

Hyruna rolled her eyes and pushed her hair off her shoulder, "both of them."

Crackle looked down. "B-both of them...have been dealt with."

Hyruna gave Crackle a scowl and looked about for something more interesting to stare at. "Leave me." There was a loud whoosh, and Crackle was gone. "Mercury!" A side door opened, and in stepped a silver-haired boy about fifteen years old. He stopped just at the steps that led up to the throne, where Hyruna was seated.

"Is the army prepared?"

"Yes."

"Is the special squad ready?"

"Yes."

"Have all the messengers been captured?"

"So far."

"Have you gotten word of Charna's whereabouts?"

"Not yet."

Hyruna smiled. _At least, _she thought, _he hasn't said 'no' yet. But then again, what could be holding Charna back?_

"I want you to find out where she is and bring her back with you. **Don't **come back without her. I need to speak with her."

* * *

It didn't take long for Mercury to find the library, but he wasn't happy to see Fauna, Kiara, _and _Chad. And by the sounds of it, they had back up on the way. "Light barrier." He muttered before revealing himself to the unsuspecting group.

"Well what do we have here?" Mercury asked. Everyone jumped back, besides the ones who didn't have enough strength.

Chad stood up, despite his legs shaking every now and then, which showed that he was weakened. "What do you want?"

"I simply want to head back with my friend," he pointed in the direction of Fauna, "Charna. She's expected at home."

"_Home?_" Fauna seemed outraged. "Her home is what you destroyed and what you are trying to prevent from helping grow back. You don't _know _what her home was. You're just some grubby kid who won't stop getting in our way." Mercury rolled his eyes. He teleported behind Chad, gave him a shove, grabbed Charna's hand and yanked her out of Fauna's grasp, and teleported on top of the boulder. He saw Fauna leap up, outraged, but she hurried over to Chad, helped him up, then went beside Kiara and crouched in a defensive position.

"Well, it seems I've gotten what I came for. Good-bye." He disappeared, leaving the three to themselves. Chad sat down again and sprawled out his arms.

"I'm so...tired." He let a groan of pain before rolling on his side. Fauna tried her best to make sure Kiara's wound was bandaged and clean. When she was sure she was fine, she helped Chad into the saddle of her horse.

"Make sure Kiara doesn't fall out. We have to leave here." She started to lead the horse back to Colligan Town.

.:A Couple of Moments Later:.

Fauna stopped underneath a willow tree and started making a camp. Using a magic spell she learned, there was a small house built in a tree nearby. She moved all the supplies in there and made the place comfortable before getting Kiara and Chad up there. She tied the harness of the horse to one of the willow tree branches before joining Chad. He was already comfortable in one corner of the room and Fauna helped Kiara get comfortable in another corner before she dropped down on the floor and fell into a fitful sleep.

* * *

It was dark by the time the group from Hyrule Castle made it to Kakariko Village. They stopped at an inn to rest. Zelda stayed in the room with Impa and sat in a chair, thinking most of the night.

"If they aren't there, we'll have to hope for the best. We'll need to head back to the Castle soon so you aren't late for that meeting."

"Impa...the thing is...I have this strange feeling. Why haven't we heard from the messengers yet?"

"Yes. Something dark is on the horizon...and it's coming closer."

* * *

Hyruna paced back and forth. Her spy hadn't been able to locate the princess, but she wouldn't give up. She would find the princess and capture her, giving herself the upper hand. One of the messengers in the castle had told her that Charna was with Mercury, but she was injured, so they took her to get medical attention.

"Is the army ready?"

"Yes."

She stood up from her throne and smiled. "Open the portal. I want as much minions as possible. Tomorrow, a new day will rise. And I...I will be the ruler of Hyrule!"

* * *

The very next morning, Impa and Zelda set out searching for the two for most of the morning, but to no avail. They were nowhere to be seen so they headed back to Hyrule Castle at top speed. When they arrived, Link and Eve greeted them. Zelda gave a small smile to Link before getting changed for a hour of hearing the pleas of the people. When she arrived in the throne-room, there was already a small group ready to beg her for something. As she sat down, they started.

Several groups came and went, asking for land, wanting several rules changed, adding new laws and all these other things. About halfway through, a soldier dashed in.

"Princess...an army is approaching Hyrule Castle." Impa's eyes narrowed and she whispered something in Zelda's ear.

"It can't be..." Zelda muttered. Then there was a dark purple and red light in the middle of the room and a portal. Out stepped a young woman. She wore a velvet dress and a silver and gold crown with a black gem.

"Ah, Princess Zelda, long time no see. Give up the throne, or I'll invade Hyrule." She smiled. "You might not know me, but I can assure you...I know _you._"

* * *

**This may have not made up for the last chapter but I'm hoping chapter thirty will make up for everything.  
**

**Yours truly,**

_**AuthorPen11**_

_**P.S.** Sorry for the short chapter. _


	30. The Climax

**After recorrecting the last chapter I just felt like singing a MLP song for some reason (if you were wondering, it was **_This Day Aria_**). So, I'm really excited about writing this and I want to make up for my rushed chapters by writing something really long - if I can. But when you leave a review, this time leave a couple questions about the story, tell me your favorite chapter (or quote if possible) and at least a few things you want to see. So...yeah.**

* * *

**Chapter 30  
**

"Guards." Zelda called, as she stood up. The townspeople scurried to a corner at the appearance of the woman and Zelda's strict tone. Well, Zelda really didn't like things taking longer than usual, and although this was a change of pace, she rather it was some prank and not something as serious as Hyrule being invaded.

The guards arrived and made a barrier in front of Zelda. Impa kept one hand on her giant sword and waited for any sudden movements. What puzzled her was why the woman let the guards surround Zelda before attacking or doing anything foolish. Then she got a cold blast of wind. Impa tried to resist the urge of shivering, but the breeze wouldn't stop. She was careful not to let one eye off of Zelda as she looked around for the source of the wind. It was actually quite humid today, so this had to have something to do with magic.

"Well, _Princess,_ let's make negotiations short. You see, I don't like to be kept waiting. What will it be? Will you hand over Hyrule Castle, or will lives be lost?"

* * *

Fauna woke up sweating. She had just awakened from a bad dream.

"Chad, Kiara, wake up." Fauna whispered, giving each one a gentle push. Chad started to stir, but Kiara was still in a fitful sleep. "Kiara, wake up," Fauna said in her ear, raising her voice a bit. Kiara shuddered before opening her eyes.

"W-where am I?" She croaked, "where's Aunt...where...where are we?"

"Colligan Town. I don't think you'd remember getting here though, but I have to tell you, we can't go back to Hyrule Castle. I don't exactly know why, but we can't do much for them."

"What do you mean?" Chad asked.

"I'll tell you in a bit, for now, eat up." She tossed Kiara and Chad a plum and some bread before walking out the door. Jumping down, Fauna landed on the springy ground and nearly fell. She was usually more balanced than this, which made her think it had something to do with dark magic. The horse was awake, but didn't seem to happy to be around her. Carefully, Fauna untied the harness and took the supplies from the horse. "You can go back now, you aren't needed. Shoo! Find your home." The horse slowly trotted away, as if it was suspicious it would grab her, then bolted. Fauna fanned the dust from her face and let out a few coughs. She levitated the supplies into the room and then jumped up after them.

"What did you do?" Chad asked, between bites.

"I freed the horse. We can't possibly keep it with us, especially since it might only slow us down."

"How would it slow us down?"

"I don't have time to cover up it's tracks every time we go somewhere. But we aren't safe here either. Come on, Chad. Me and you have to carry a bit more since Kiara's still a little weak."

"No I'm not!" Kiara pouted. Fauna let out a small smile. _It's been a while since I've heard her refusing to do something. _

"Come on Kiara, we can't risk you fainting again." Kiara crossed her arms and huffed, but Fauna was pleased to know that she was starting to give in. "How do you feel today Ki?"

"I'm better, thank you." Kiara said, standing herself up. "But why were we going to Hyrule Castle again? Didn't Chad deliver the message?"

"Yeah, he did. I was thinking that we should regroup with Princess Zelda and Lady Impa, but now all I feel is negative and panicky energy waves. Along with a very dark magic signature..." Fauna looked outside, a sad look on her face. "I guess we should find a better place to hide and train."

"Hide and train?"

"We can't go back home or at Hyrule, plus we're too weak and unorganized to do anything. Remember, sheikah must know when they cannot fight anymore, and they must know their limits. Right now, we are way too weak for taking on problems by ourselves and being out here, we're basically easy targets. Besides, when the time comes, we'll learn how to use our abilities. Now come on Chad, grab that pack and I'll take the other." Fauna said, picking up the bag and handing Kiara the small bag containing their food.

"But where will we hide?"

"In the forest. Come on, we should begin scouting anyways."

* * *

"What do you want with Hyrule?" Zelda asked, glaring at the uninvited guest.

"Well, you see, I believe that I should be the queen of the land, and this is one of the first lands I shall conquer." Hyruna said, she gave a sly look at Zelda, "and don't even think about sending a messenger to the outlying lands or else."

The doors swung open, and in walked in a few goblin creatures. They sneered at the villagers and walked up to Hyruna and bowed.

"My lady, the town is surrounded, give us the word and we shall set fire to it."

Zelda took in a breath. She couldn't risk saying the wrong things, but it certainly wasn't this woman's land. For generations, Zelda's family had ruled Hyrule and she didn't want to seem to be the reason it happened. She didn't want historians of other lands saying she gave it up to a strange woman because she was weak and had the lower hand. But she didn't want to risk anyone's lives. She gave Impa a sad look, she wasn't quite sure what to do.

"Well? What shall it be? Don't keep me waiting!" Zelda sighed. _Impa, do you have any ideas? Do you know where Link is? I didn't expect this too happen so quickly but I certainly don't want to fight a useless battle. _Impa seemed to know what she was thinking and gave her her a nod.

"You shall have the throne," Zelda said, "on one condition."

"What? Name one?"

"That the town be spared."

"Fine, so be it. Goblin, tell the army not to set fire to one inch of the ground or else." She narrowed her eyes and gave him the most wicked look she could muster at the moment - trying to hide her joy. "As for you," she turned back around to Zelda, "no one will be hurt as long as there isn't an uprising. I suggest you gather _my _people and tell them what is going on. For now, lock them up goblin commander," she looked at everyone in the room and stopped to take in a breath, "begone."

* * *

Eve was strolling through the halls with Link when he stopped by the window.

"Hey Link, did you see something?" Eve asked, turning to look out the window. He paused, then nodded. Eve scanned the scenery but couldn't see anything. Then she saw a black line on the horizon approaching Castle Town. In a flash, Link had whipped out a telescope, much to Eve's surprise. His face became hard and he handed it to Eve. She looked, and gasped.

"Why, there are monsters headed this way! Princess Zelda must be in danger, Link we have to warn -" Link clapped a hand over her mouth and pulled Eve and himself behind a pillar.

A few seconds passed before Link finally loosened up. "Whaf waf fit?" He slowly uncovered her mouth and gave her a questioning look. Eve let out a small cough. "What was it?"

Link didn't respond for a moment, then he let out a trouble sigh. "We have to get out of here."

"What, why?" Eve questioned, "I still have to sell the merchandise and I don't want to leave any of my stuff here."

"Eve, we don't have time. If we sit around, there will be no time to escape. Come on." He grabbed her hand and hurried to the infirmary. Luckily, it was empty. Link scoured the cabinets until he found a giant jug filled with heart potion. He gingerly placed it in his satchel before hurrying out. Eve followed, quite bewildered at why Link was stealing something so valuable. Next, Link went into the armory.

"Can you wield any weapons?"

"...my father...well, he had taught me how to use the bow, but that was ages ago."

"I'll have to teach you later." Link replied, grabbing a quiver filled with arrows and a bow. He grabbed a few deku nuts from a pot and a slingshot. They left the room a few seconds later and hurried to the stables. He dashed over to Epona and dumped all the things he had grabbed in the saddlebags before untying her. "Hold her harness and don't let anyone see you." Link said, just before he disappeared.

A minute later he reappeared with a large bundle which he tied on the saddle. He helped Eve up and then swung himself up.

"Hyah!" He shouted, getting Epona to gallop.

"Where are we going?" Eve asked Link as they hurried through the streets at full speed. Link didn't reply, but hurried towards the west gate. He urged Epona forward and just as they left, Eve saw the horde of monsters clearly. Moblins, stalchildren, stalfos, poes, all kinds of horrible creatures. They let out horrible cries before hurrying towards the town gate. But the gate was being quickly pulled back to keep the monsters out. Link and Eve were now alone on the other side of the gate. Link kept Epona at a solid gallop before slowing her down as he headed towards Kakariko.

They had been riding for several hours in that direction before Link turned towards a different direction. He made Epona swim a few streams before entering a large forest. For about thirty minutes, they continued in the darkness of the forest until the came to a small clearing that had a small stable built inside a cave. On top of it, was a small house.

.:A Few Minutes Later:.

Wordlessly, Link helped Eve down and untied the stuff. He opened the stable door and picked up a nearby pitchfork. He moved the hay a bit, emptied the water and made everything cozy for Epona before leading her inside. He took off her saddle and harness, hanging them up before hauling the saddlebags outside. Then he locked the door behind him and stuck the key in a small crevice above the door. Link pulled out the slingshot from the saddlebag and launched a deku nut at a partly hidden lever. There was a moment of silence before there was a loud creaking and groaning. Then a pulley-like contraption was revealed.

Link launched another deku nut and a rope ladder fell down. He moved the supplies on the pulley and slowly pulled the items up there. Then he secured the rope to a tree and climbed the ladder. From below, Eve could see Link move the items onto the porch before lowering it down again and repeating the process. Finally, after he was done, he hit the lever again and the contraption slowly disappeared into a large crate before being pushed behind a large bush.

Eve climbed the rope ladder when Link waved her to come over, and at the top of the ladder she took in a deep breath. She scurried on to the porch as Link rolled up the ladder. Then, pulling off his hat, he reached in it and pulled out a bronze key. He unlocked the door and lit a lantern that was on the floor of the porch. Then, pulling a lever, the lights in the house turned on. Obviously another contraption Link made.

Inside was a large room that was actually quite empty. Link dragged in everything and headed over to a big crate with the largest bundle. He opened it up and started placing the food, -hard foods first, delicate foods last- so that they wouldn't squish each other. Then, he closed the lid and went on to the next bundle. Link continued doing this until the bundles were open. Then he tossed the empty sacks into a corner with scraps.

"If you get the chance, I suggest you make a saddle and a more sturdier dress with that." Link said, pointing at the dress she had been given my Princess Zelda. He placed his sword beside a chair and started climbing up the ladder to where there was a small opening. Curiously, Eve followed. When she entered the hole, she noticed it was a medium-sized loft. Link was changing the sheets on the bed and throwing the others on what looked like a straw mattress.

"You're sleeping downstairs?"

"You want me to sleep here?" Eve blushed. Link shook his head. "Of course I'm sleeping downstairs. Pish, some people." He muttered under his breath. Eve resisted the urge to say something rude.

Link headed back downstairs, but Eve felt like she should rest for a bit.

* * *

Fauna, Chad, and Kiara trudged on for hours until Fauna came to a waterfall. The waterfall flowed into a lake, and in the middle of the lake was a small island. Using a bit of magic, Fauna made two wooden canoes.

"Chad, you should row the supplies there and I'll go with Kiara. Chad, are you listening?"

"Sorry, I was just thinking. I'll take care of it." He said, picking up a paddle.

"Careful, by the way that branch just got swept away, it's looks like it is a pretty tough current. And I bet it's pretty deep too."

Chad nodded before getting in the boat and slowly making his way to the island. Fauna and Kiara followed a few seconds later, and luckily, everything happened without a hitch. Once they were on the other side, they dragged the canoes behind the trees so they couldn't be seen from the shore on the other side. They picked up the supplies and trekked further inland before stopping five minutes later.

"This is perfect." Fauna dropped her bags and took in a deep breath. Slowly, her hand started to glow. She started to skip before touching several trees that were close to each other with her glowing hand before it faded. Then there was a little rumbling before the trees started to spiral around each other making a large platform before it started making a two-story home. A few minutes later, the world seemed to return back to normal. Fauna stopped and turned around to see Kiara with her mouth open and Chad looking _really _confused.

"What the heck did you just do?!"

"I made a house so we can live here, duh." Fauna said nonchalantly. A vine ladder dropped down and Fauna slowly started ascending to the porch (she hadn't taken off the heavy pack). Chad and Kiara soon followed. Inside was a large room, and there was a ladder that lead up to what Fauna said was the second floor. Unpacking the things, she separated it into three groups: food, bedding, and miscellaneous.

She took out the food and laid it on the wooden table, separated the bedding and placed the miscellanea in a nearby crate.

"Well, everything seems well, we should try to make the best of it. Any unnecessary clothing should be used to cushion the bed. Well...I don't know about you, but I'm going to fix up my bed. It might be a while before we head over to Hyrule Castle and check what's going on."

Fauna walked up the stairs and started dumping out her satchel. Out came her spell book, extra clothes, and the magic plant. Fauna sighed. She started to make up her bed. The loft was divided into three rooms by a wooden wall. Instead of a door though, there were vines. Fauna neatly organized her room, folding her extra clothes in half to make a makeshift pillow. She placed the spell book under the bed and picked up the plant. She climbed down the ladder and jumped down and started to explore the forest for a suitable place to plant the tree, train and practice in private.

* * *

When Eve finally woke up, she smelt something nice. At first, she wasn't quite sure where she was, then the memories of the morning flooded back to her. She shook her head to clear her thoughts, then rolled out of bed. She climbed out of bed and slid down the ladders until she was in the main room. There, she found Link eating soup. He pushed a bowl towards her and used his foot to push out the chair.

Eve sat down and started to eat. After a few bites, she asked, "how long was I out?"

"About three hours."

"That long?"

Link nodded and continued eating. Eve finished off her soup. "Soup's good. What is it?"

Again, instead of talking, Link pointed at some tomatoes and feathers.

"Ah, so it's chicken and tomato soup?" Eve asked. Link nodded.

* * *

_The light was bright and her eyes stung. 'Where am I? Am I dead?'  
_

_'To be honest dear, you're more of in the between world.'_

_'M-more in between world...?'_

_'Well, you see, Topaz, you are special. Did you ever wonder how you protected Kiara?'  
_

_'Well, yes, I was pretty sure I couldn't do anything but shield her with me...but, I didn't expect this...by the way, I'm not more than half-dead, am I?'_

_'Oh no, you're actually...well, I'd rather not get on to that. You're fine. Anyways,' she said, shaking away the incoming thoughts, 'your powers have something to do with your imagination. A physic power, to be exact. Poes have a weaker type of physic power.'  
_

_'Is this how they hover and shoot flames from their lanterns?'_

_'Yes.'_

_'So I'm a poe!?'_

_'No,' she groaned. -*This'll be much harder if she keeps interrupting.*- 'Well, your abilities will be needed back in Hyrule, but I'm afraid you can't go back now. You see, I've used a lot of energy saving you-'  
_

_'So I was dead!'_

_She looked away. Topaz frowned. The woman she was standing next to looked very young. She wore a dress that seemed to be woven from vines and various wild flowers. She turned back to face Topaz._

_'So, you see, I can't send you back yet. You're here physically, and you'll be of no use back at Hyrule for the moment.'_

_'What? How? What's going on?'_

_'Well, Hyruna has Hyrule under her thumb, and you are too weak to fight against her. As she remains on the throne, she gains power. But with your energy, you and your friends should be able to absorb the dark magic she's taken and make her powerless. What I need to do, is figure out how to unlock your powers. Of course, you can occasionally visit Hyrule, but not physically, only...well...as a spirit.'_

_'...'_

_'So you see, you could visit Hyrule for a bit but you can't intervene. Only the four - Naryu, Din, Farore, and Hylia - can change the future without a physical body. So you see, you have to wait here until you can control your abilities and I can send you back. For now, you must remain patient.'_

_'How long would it be until you can send me back?'_

_The woman hesitated. 'Er...uhm...about...'_

_'Well?'_

_'Three years.'_

* * *

**The story...is...PARTLY over. The next book for this story is the sequel '**_Awakening_**'. So, it will be a bit before I start that because I want to get a move on with 'Jingle' and possibly start 'A Link Between Earth' or a different story that I have on my poll (votes are needed for the next story to get moving). I plan on taking a break and revamping the past chapters (from 1-29). I really would like to start 'ALBE' or 'Lothal Squad'. But I also want you to ask questions in your review. **

**Like- 'What do you want to know about the story?'-'What do you want to see in the sequel?'-'Do you want more back-story on the other characters?'-'Would you like to see some of the graduates again?'-'What do you think should/shouldn't happen in the sequel?'**

**Say anything you want and I'll answer them via PM and/or the first chapter of **_Awakening_**. **Also, **if you haven't voted on the poll _please _do! It's very important I know which story you would like me to start on when I'm done writing my chapters for 'Jingle'! Right now, we have ALBE in 1st place, and Revenge, Another Crew and Secret Power are _tied _for 2nd! SO head right down there and push one of the stories ahead for the lead! First story to get five votes wins!  
**

_**Yours truly,**_

AuthorPen11


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